This chapter is slightly shorter than I'd planned, due to a sudden attack
of aggravated plot bunnies that unexpectedly vanished after I took my dog
for a muddy two-mile walk in the dark. I worry about myself sometimes, I
really do. It's a bad idea to walk in a forest at night with tendrils of
fog wrapping around you. Gave me a bad attack of imagination. Brr.
Thanks again to Gryffindor620 for reviews. I'm not sure what's more boring,
school or work, but both have given me a love of writing.
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There was a crackle and suddenly the Source brought up his hand. Piper could see that he was holding a small black wand that was making a highly unpleasant noise, like paper being scrunched rapidly. It flashed suddenly and then, before Tethos could finish whirling around, a beam of black lightening struck him full in the back.
Tethos screamed, a noise of such anger and pain that Piper had to hold her hands over her ears, a noise that rebounded around the warehouse and drove the dust down from the roof beams.
The wand was making a new noise now, a staccato yelp, and then the lightning was changing, to wrap its way around the red-skinned demon, holding him in a tight skin of moving darkness. When the Source finally lowered the rod, Tethos was frozen in place, a silent, unmoving statue.
"Even the strongest of us can be brought low," said the Source in a highly satisfied tone of voice. "Even the mighty Tethos," he spat.
"You may never serve me," he said, addressing Tethos and then looking around at a furious Piper and the Hammer of Ra, which was still hanging in the air, "But things have turned out perfectly. Three birds with one stone. I get rid of an uncontrollable menace who's been skulking around hell for too long, I finally find the greatest magical weapon in the world and-" he walked in front of Piper and folded his hands inside his sleeves.
"I get to break the Charmed Ones by killing one of their most irritating number. I'd like to see the look on the face of your Whitelighter when he finds your smashed and broken body."
The Source broke off and walked over to the white magical weapon. "But first, lets get rid of Tethos." He reached out to grasp the Hammer - only for his hand to pass right through it. Both Piper and the Source goggled. "What?"
"You really are quite thick," said a highly amused voice off to one side. Piper snapped her head around. Tethos was leaning against one of the nearby walls. She looked back at the motionless figure in the middle of the room, which suddenly rippled and dissipated like dust in the wind.
"I've known a lot of Sources over the years," Tethos continued, still sounding amused. "Thin, fat, tall, short, paranoid, schizoid, slightly insane, very insane. One was even slimy, which was unpleasant to look at but made him very easy to track. And you know what, all were equally arrogant, equally convinced that they had more cunning than a weasel. And all were, in fact, equally limited in intelligence. But you're less bright than most of your predecessors."
The Source pulled out the wand again, but this time Tethos was faster. He made a twisting motion with his hand and suddenly the Source was holding a handful of black sand. "How..." he hissed.
"I heard you coming," said Tethos contemptuously. "As I killed Gorgos I heard you start to manifest yourself and so I created the illusion that you were able to disable so well."
The Source hissed again and then suddenly sprang forwards; forming a globe of blue energy in his hands he hurled it straight at his opponent, who caught it in one taloned hand.
"Two out of ten," he said coldly and crushed the globe from existence. The Source hurled another, larger one, which Tethos dealt with just as easily.
Piper could feel what was going to happen next. The Source tilted his head slightly to one side and then threw an equally large energy ball straight at her. She shrieked and pulled her head to one side, but she knew that she couldn't dodge it, it was going to hit...
She blinked. Wasn't it? Then she looked up. The globe was hanging in the air, unable to penetrate the glittering red barrier that had appeared around her - on the same place that the glowing circle had been imprisoning her.
Tethos shook his head again. "Do you really think that I'd let you harm an innocent?" he asked the Source. "Still less one of the Charmed Ones? You are really so painfully obvious." He flicked a finger and suddenly the Source's own energy ball was hurtling back towards its creator, who was barely able to deflect it in time. There was a 'whomph' noise as it demolished the tattered remains of the office next to the one where Gorgos had been caught.
The Source just stood there for a moment, and for the first time in the years that she'd been battling evil, Piper realised that he was frightened. Then he suddenly pulled another wand out of his sleeves and pointed it, shaking slightly, at Tethos, who grinned hugely and flexed his fingers. There was a tinkling noise as the wand fell to the ground in four pieces, leaving the Source to stare at the stub that remained in his hand.
"I've been fighting evil scum like you for a thousand years," said Tethos. "You've been the Source for 70 of those years. Who's going to win this fight? Perhaps I should give Malchance a companion in agony. I nailed him up there to teach his successors a lesson that there are some things that you cannot do. I guess you're all too stupid to learn."
The Source let out a scream of pure absolute rage and started to throw more energy balls at the other demon, twisting the air with shimmering balls of dark light in a desperate attack. Each one was snuffed from existence or broken up as it arrived or deflected back at him.
Then Tethos took a slow step forward and raised his hand menacingly. Something flashed at the Source's throat, like a flutter of dark light, and he took a sudden halting step back.
"No," said the Source in a grating voice, but the fluttering light redoubled in intensity and Piper could suddenly see what appeared to be a ghostly outline of a hand, reaching for the Source's throat.
"No!!" This time the Source screamed the word. "This... is... not... possible... No-one... can... touch... me!!!"
"Meet someone who can," said Tethos grimly, and suddenly pushed his hand forwards, sending the Source reeling backwards. He forced himself upright and flashed into a fiery outline - before reappearing exactly where he had been.
Laughter rang in the air. "I thought you were stronger than that, Source!" said Tethos mockingly. "Little Gorgos couldn't shimmer out. Not strong enough. How about you?"
Increasingly desperate, the Source flashed out again and then reappeared.
"Perhaps you need some incentive?" Tethos turned to Piper. "I'm sorry, I never asked your name. How about it, Charmed One? Would you like to watch me nail the Source to his own ceiling?"
"Piper," she said, nodding in recognition to the demon. "You do the hammering, I'll hold the nails," she added, growling at the Source.
And then a new noise suddenly filled the warehouse, caused by the big padlocked double doors at one end, close to where the Source was standing, blowing off. And the rest of the Charmed ones, plus allies, strode in.
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There was a crackle and suddenly the Source brought up his hand. Piper could see that he was holding a small black wand that was making a highly unpleasant noise, like paper being scrunched rapidly. It flashed suddenly and then, before Tethos could finish whirling around, a beam of black lightening struck him full in the back.
Tethos screamed, a noise of such anger and pain that Piper had to hold her hands over her ears, a noise that rebounded around the warehouse and drove the dust down from the roof beams.
The wand was making a new noise now, a staccato yelp, and then the lightning was changing, to wrap its way around the red-skinned demon, holding him in a tight skin of moving darkness. When the Source finally lowered the rod, Tethos was frozen in place, a silent, unmoving statue.
"Even the strongest of us can be brought low," said the Source in a highly satisfied tone of voice. "Even the mighty Tethos," he spat.
"You may never serve me," he said, addressing Tethos and then looking around at a furious Piper and the Hammer of Ra, which was still hanging in the air, "But things have turned out perfectly. Three birds with one stone. I get rid of an uncontrollable menace who's been skulking around hell for too long, I finally find the greatest magical weapon in the world and-" he walked in front of Piper and folded his hands inside his sleeves.
"I get to break the Charmed Ones by killing one of their most irritating number. I'd like to see the look on the face of your Whitelighter when he finds your smashed and broken body."
The Source broke off and walked over to the white magical weapon. "But first, lets get rid of Tethos." He reached out to grasp the Hammer - only for his hand to pass right through it. Both Piper and the Source goggled. "What?"
"You really are quite thick," said a highly amused voice off to one side. Piper snapped her head around. Tethos was leaning against one of the nearby walls. She looked back at the motionless figure in the middle of the room, which suddenly rippled and dissipated like dust in the wind.
"I've known a lot of Sources over the years," Tethos continued, still sounding amused. "Thin, fat, tall, short, paranoid, schizoid, slightly insane, very insane. One was even slimy, which was unpleasant to look at but made him very easy to track. And you know what, all were equally arrogant, equally convinced that they had more cunning than a weasel. And all were, in fact, equally limited in intelligence. But you're less bright than most of your predecessors."
The Source pulled out the wand again, but this time Tethos was faster. He made a twisting motion with his hand and suddenly the Source was holding a handful of black sand. "How..." he hissed.
"I heard you coming," said Tethos contemptuously. "As I killed Gorgos I heard you start to manifest yourself and so I created the illusion that you were able to disable so well."
The Source hissed again and then suddenly sprang forwards; forming a globe of blue energy in his hands he hurled it straight at his opponent, who caught it in one taloned hand.
"Two out of ten," he said coldly and crushed the globe from existence. The Source hurled another, larger one, which Tethos dealt with just as easily.
Piper could feel what was going to happen next. The Source tilted his head slightly to one side and then threw an equally large energy ball straight at her. She shrieked and pulled her head to one side, but she knew that she couldn't dodge it, it was going to hit...
She blinked. Wasn't it? Then she looked up. The globe was hanging in the air, unable to penetrate the glittering red barrier that had appeared around her - on the same place that the glowing circle had been imprisoning her.
Tethos shook his head again. "Do you really think that I'd let you harm an innocent?" he asked the Source. "Still less one of the Charmed Ones? You are really so painfully obvious." He flicked a finger and suddenly the Source's own energy ball was hurtling back towards its creator, who was barely able to deflect it in time. There was a 'whomph' noise as it demolished the tattered remains of the office next to the one where Gorgos had been caught.
The Source just stood there for a moment, and for the first time in the years that she'd been battling evil, Piper realised that he was frightened. Then he suddenly pulled another wand out of his sleeves and pointed it, shaking slightly, at Tethos, who grinned hugely and flexed his fingers. There was a tinkling noise as the wand fell to the ground in four pieces, leaving the Source to stare at the stub that remained in his hand.
"I've been fighting evil scum like you for a thousand years," said Tethos. "You've been the Source for 70 of those years. Who's going to win this fight? Perhaps I should give Malchance a companion in agony. I nailed him up there to teach his successors a lesson that there are some things that you cannot do. I guess you're all too stupid to learn."
The Source let out a scream of pure absolute rage and started to throw more energy balls at the other demon, twisting the air with shimmering balls of dark light in a desperate attack. Each one was snuffed from existence or broken up as it arrived or deflected back at him.
Then Tethos took a slow step forward and raised his hand menacingly. Something flashed at the Source's throat, like a flutter of dark light, and he took a sudden halting step back.
"No," said the Source in a grating voice, but the fluttering light redoubled in intensity and Piper could suddenly see what appeared to be a ghostly outline of a hand, reaching for the Source's throat.
"No!!" This time the Source screamed the word. "This... is... not... possible... No-one... can... touch... me!!!"
"Meet someone who can," said Tethos grimly, and suddenly pushed his hand forwards, sending the Source reeling backwards. He forced himself upright and flashed into a fiery outline - before reappearing exactly where he had been.
Laughter rang in the air. "I thought you were stronger than that, Source!" said Tethos mockingly. "Little Gorgos couldn't shimmer out. Not strong enough. How about you?"
Increasingly desperate, the Source flashed out again and then reappeared.
"Perhaps you need some incentive?" Tethos turned to Piper. "I'm sorry, I never asked your name. How about it, Charmed One? Would you like to watch me nail the Source to his own ceiling?"
"Piper," she said, nodding in recognition to the demon. "You do the hammering, I'll hold the nails," she added, growling at the Source.
And then a new noise suddenly filled the warehouse, caused by the big padlocked double doors at one end, close to where the Source was standing, blowing off. And the rest of the Charmed ones, plus allies, strode in.
