Part Thirteen

"Release her," Cole ordered the red-skinned demon who gripped Phoebe.

"Just kill him," she impatiently demanded while she struggled under the claws that held her tight.

With the demon cleverly using Phoebe as a shield, Cole couldn't get a clear shot. He threw one energy ball and deliberately missed the demon's bald head by mere inches. "Next time, I won't miss," he bluffed.

The demon grinned and flashed its long spiked teeth, "By all means, go ahead. Either way, she will nourish my children." When Cole didn't act, the demon smugly commented, "I thought so."

To Phoebe's surprise, she felt herself beginning to shimmer and cried out to Cole.

Cole immediately closed his eyes and concentrated on tracking Phoebe. He'd never had a problem finding her before and he'd be damned if he'd lose her now. His shimmer took him to a chamber where he found her struggling more aggressively with her captor.

"You're not getting me rare, medium, or well-done," she muttered as she hunched forward. In one swift movement, she had grabbed the demon's upper arms and flipped him over herself.

As soon as Phoebe staggered back, Cole killed the surprised demon with one shot. "You okay?" The right shoulder of her sweatshirt was slashed where the demon had grabbed her when he was flipped. "You shouldn't have done that," he criticized as he stepped closer to inspect her injury. "Wasn't our verbal confrontation before enough to convince you to take it easy?"

"It's what he gets for wanting me to be filet mignon for his kids," she wheezed without apology as she stepped back, out of his concerned reach. Her shoulder didn't bother her nearly as much as the burning in her chest. It was hard to breathe and her heart sank when she realized what it meant.

"Anyone with the slightest bit of sense can tell you're best served as dessert," Cole joked to ease the tension but Phoebe continued to struggle to breathe properly and Cole refused to keep his distance any longer. He quickly closed in on her to examine her shoulder. "I don't like the look of this one," he announced as he carefully fingered the tears of the shirt and focused on one of the slashes to her skin. "The others don't appear to be that deep."

Phoebe shook her head and tried to push past him. "We've got to keep moving. C'mon, shimmer us back."

"Not until you've rested for a few minutes," he argued as he placed his hands on top of her shoulders and firmly pushed her so she was forced to sit on the ground. "Stay. I'll be right back with some bandages."

She protested but he was already gone and she sighed because she now had no choice but to wait for his return. She unzipped the collar of her shirt as if loosening it would provide her with more air. But she found herself still trying to catch her breath and couldn't help but glance down at the star. And before she had time to panic, Cole returned.

From the look on her face, he knew something was wrong. "Let me see," he demanded when she immediately zipped up her collar.

"I'm fine," she resisted even though she pressed against her chest with a trembling hand. She took another deep breath. "See, I'm better. Fix my shoulder so we can go."

"Let me see," he repeated. Without waiting for a response, he pried away her hand and pulled down the zipper. He couldn't even take satisfaction in the fact that he'd been right. Her exertion with the demon had caused another change and the color of the deep red star was now mottled with purple. "Phoebe"

"Don't say anything," she whispered as she looked away. "PleaseI don't think I can handle it right now."

Heeding her request wasn't a problem because Cole wasn't sure he could even find his voice. He was one step closer to permanently losing her. "Take off the top so I can bandage your shoulder," he told her in a hoarse voice.

Phoebe nodded, relieved that he wasn't going to make more of an issue of the color change. She winced as she pulled her arm out of the sleeve and tried not to flinch when he carefully began to wrap the bandage around the gashes. She wasn't sure which hurt more, her throbbing shoulder, the change in the star's color, or the way he was trying to hide the despair he was beginning to feel. "Cole?" she questioned without even knowing what she really wanted to ask.

"I'd feel better if I could just take you back to Leo," he said as he finished securing the bandage, "and find the Dracken myself."

"No, not when we're so close." She slowly put her arm back into the sleeve and zipped up the top.

"At least rest for a few minutes," he suggested. She'd already overdone it and he wasn't sure how much more it would take for the star to change again.

"We'll start off slowly," she compromised as she awkwardly stood up. She swayed slightly and allowed him to keep his arm around her. She couldn't even maintain her annoyance with herself for finding comfort in his arms or for feeling his overwhelming sense relief.

But they had barely taken a few steps when Cole was hit from behind by a shockwave that propelled him forward. While Phoebe merely stumbled to the ground, Cole landed in a heap by the far wall. And, before either could react, Phoebe was grabbed from behind and yanked to her feet.

"Dammit," Cole muttered when he looked up at hearing Phoebe's gasp, "a Berrindler. I should've realized."

"Cole" Phoebe nervously uttered while the demon's claws dug into her shoulders.

"Quiet!" the red-skinned demon ordered. "My mate needs to rest."

"Wouldn't want to wake the little missus, would we?" Cole taunted as he got to his feet. He couldn't risk taking a shot and he couldn't shimmer away without Phoebe and his mind raced to figure out how to get them past this danger. "How many more are you?"

"Only me," the demon confidently stated, "which is more than enough to handle the two of you."

"Kill him," Phoebe whispered hopefully. But when Cole didn't move, nor raise a single energy ball, she began to bend forward as she did the first time she'd been grabbed by the demon's twin.

"No!" Cole warned her. "He'll only split into another duplicate if you do."

The demon grinned and roughly pulled Phoebe upright, "Energetic little thing, aren't you? You'll make quite the meal for my children."

"What's going on in there?" a sharp voice called from outside the chamber. "Trevon, you know I need quiet!"

"Apologies, my pet," Trevon replied as he turned to the doorway. "But come see what I've brought you."

"Better luck next time," Cole responded when he was hit with a burst of inspiration. He shimmered out of the chamber.

Phoebe gasped in shock when Cole vanished. Her heart screamed that he wouldn't leave her and she shut her eyes and repeated in her mind the mantra, I trust him, I trust him' Trevon's claws dug deeper into her shoulders while she anxiously waited for Cole's return.

"Coward," Trevon sneered before he shoved Phoebe toward the doorway.

"He may be many things," she retorted as she fought to remain in place, "but coward isn't one of them. You'll find out when he comes back for you." Suddenly, she was being pulled back and she managed to twist herself free in time to find Belthazor snapping Trevon's neck. "Cole," she whispered but instinctively took a step back.

Letting the body drop to the ground, Belthazor morphed into Cole and he quietly thanked her, "For what you said"

"I don't understand," she shook her head while she looked from the body to him. "Why didn't you want me to attack him if you were going to kill him anyway? And why didn't you just fire an energy ball at him like the last one?"

"Because the only way to kill a Berrindler without it duplicating first is to take it by surprise," Cole answered while he checked her shoulders for further injury. "Minor scratches," he told her. She seemed dissatisfied with his answer so he explained, "The first time you were grabbed, he probably split off the second you started to flip him and that duplicate shimmered away to safety before we even knew it existed. But the original was still stunned enough from your flip that I was able to kill him before he could duplicate again. When that duplicate grabbed you now, he was anticipating your move so the only way I could surprise him was to shimmer in behind him. The best part is that now we don't have to worry about payment for the Dracken." He tugged at the zipper of her top, "Let me see."

She shook her head and tried to stop him, "I don't feel any different. It's not like the attack before."

"Let me see," he repeated. He sighed in relief when he saw that the star remained the same mottled color.

"Told you," she softly said as she zipped up the top. "Now can you shimmer us back to where we were before?"

"Trevon?"

Both Phoebe and Cole spun to find a female version of the same demon standing in the doorway, cloaked in a heavy black robe.

"What have you done?" the demoness screeched when she saw Trevon's body lying at their feet.

Phoebe wasn't sure she had the energy to go through another fight and pressed herself closer to Cole. "Cole, she's furi--" But she couldn't finish her thought because a shockwave threw her back against the wall.

"Phoebe!" But before Cole could shimmer to her side and escape, he, too, was hit by a shockwave and thrown back.

"You stupid fool!" the demoness spat as she stood over Trevon's body. "I told you I was still sated from your last kill!"

Cole looked up in a daze and realized, "You're pregnant."

"Why else would I be down here in these nether-chambers?" she complained. "The fool thought another kill would please me enough to take him back to my bed," she sneered while she gave the corpse a sharp kick. "Now," she glared at Phoebe, "because of you, I've lost my protection."

"Me?" Phoebe uttered as she brought a hand to the back of her head. "What the hell'd I do?"

"You're female," she snarled. "Trevon knew females provide more sustenance. Your pathetically small form will still be enough to feed us for a week."

"Wait!" Cole shouted when the demoness raised her arm to strike Phoebe again. "Leave her be and I'll let you live."

"You'll let me live?" she laughed. "Do you mean to think you could actually stop me?"

Cole smiled smugly, "I know I canTressla."

Phoebe was just as surprised as the demoness by his recognition of her. "You know her?" Phoebe wondered.

"Who are you?" Tressla demanded.

Cole stood and brushed the dirt off his pants. "I know you, Tressla. You can't duplicate while you're pregnant and you won't risk further attack for fear of miscarrying."

"I fear nothing!" she angrily retorted. "Now who are you?" she demanded again. "I've never seen you before."

"How about now?" Cole asked while he transformed into Belthazor. "Recognize me now, Tressla?"

"Belthazor," Tressla acknowledged. "I thought you were dead. Thrice over."

Phoebe rose to her feet in shock and whispered, "Cole, what's going on? Who is she?"

He ignored Phoebe and focused on Tressla. "I was," he replied before he grinned, "but I'm back thanks to this one." He pointed to Phoebe and added, "For my freedom, I owe her the favor of accompanying her on her mission." He moved close to Tressla and bent his head so he could whisper in her ear. "We are going now. Take care, my pet."

"Belthazor," she purred as she ran her red hand over his chest, "wouldn't you rather stay? I'll let your female go. I'll even find her another to take your place. Stay with me and become my protector. My lover."

"Cole" Phoebe warned as she pressed her hand to the star on her chest. Enough is enough.' She glared at him, "You wanna play catch up with your old girlfriend, fine. I'm outta here!"

"Quiet," he snapped at her. He turned back to Tressla and stroked the back of her bald head, "What do you offer me for such a burden?" he growled in a low tone. "If you're already nesting, you must be near term but I would still be tied to you for the first three years of your spawns' lives."

"True," she agreed while she seductively ran her hands along his body, "but surely you remember what it was like between us. I promise you the same and more." She brushed the folds of her cloak and assured him, "They won't pose a problem. They'll learn to keep their place until they are old enough to go off on their own."

"How many are you carrying, three, four?" he asked while he kept an eye on Phoebe who was carefully creeping towards the doorway.

"Ever the flatterer," Tressla purred before she smiled, exposing her long, white, sharp teeth. She rubbed her distended belly and proudly informed him, "In five weeks time, I will be mother to the first six of the next generation. They're growing stronger with each passing day but just think of what they could accomplish with you as their mentor."

Ignoring Phoebe's gasp of disgust, Belthazor pulled Tressla even closer and kissed her hard.

"I knew you couldn't resist," she whispered smugly. "Come, lover, let me show you my chamber."

He moved behind her, wrapped his arm around her neck, and kissed her ear. "Sorry, Tressla," he whispered, "but I've got plans of my own." And before she could react, he applied enough pressure in his grip around her neck until she sagged against him, unconscious. He lowered her body to the ground and told a surprised Phoebe, "Be right back." He returned a few minutes later with a length of rope and secured Tressla's hands behind her back. "Come on," he told Phoebe when he was finished. But Phoebe continued to stare at him in shock and he urged, "Come on, Phoebe, I don't know how long she'll be out."

Phoebe shook her head, "Change back first." He seemed confused and she insisted, "Change back."

One look at his hands and he realized he was still in Belthazor's form. Turning back into Cole's, he apologized, "I didn't realize." She still seemed wary of him and he assured her, "I never lost control. I couldn't tell you what I --"

"I know," she interrupted, "and, even though I didn't know what you were up to, I never lost faith." She kept her distance though, "But it's hard seeing you like that again. Knowing you'll have to struggle, knowing the temptation will be great."

Not the reaction he was expecting from her and he admitted, "I thought you'd be more worried or even scared that he was back."

"You are who you are," she shrugged, "and I finally know better than to try and change you." She nearly smiled, "You were the most self-assured I've seen in ages and I don't think you've looked better."

Her acceptance of his inner nature surprised him and he was afraid much of it stemmed from the fact that she knew she was running out of time. "I need Belthazor's strength," he quietly told her, "to take them with us." Phoebe merely nodded so he morphed back into Belthazor. He wrapped an arm around each of the demon's bodies and told Phoebe, "Grab onto me." He flashed her a grin when, due to the fact that his hands and arms were occupied with the bodies, she was forced to wrap her arms around his waist.

"Not one word," she warned before he laughed and shimmered them back to the original cavern. She quickly stepped away from him and scanned the area. "Looks like it's clear."

"Start moving," he ordered as he carried the bodies along, "we have to find the Dracken."

"Do you hear that?" Phoebe stood still a moment and listened. "I don't think we're alone."

Belthazor stopped and turned his head in the direction Phoebe indicated. He heard the low snarls and immediately lowered the bodies to the ground. He reached out for her and shoved her behind him, "Don't move."

As they were surrounded, she gulped and took comfort in his protective stance, "I think the Dracken just found us."

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