SEVENTEEN
"There has to be something," said Leo.
"I told you," said Tempus, "when this fool returned to the past, he did
not take into account the myriad eddies and currents in time. When he opened
the vortex which allowed him to return to this time, he did nothing to
compensate for the added strain that vortex places on those eddies and currents.
Now they swell with magic they were not meant to contain. When they have
swelled to capacity, they shall burst as a damn bursts when the strain of the
water it contains becomes too great. That magic will then wash back through
time consuming all in its path."
"Wait a minute," said Chris. "You're still here. How come you haven't
been destroyed if magic connected with time is the first to be destroyed? Yours
is the magic connected with time. You should have been vanquished when the
spells were."
"I am a demon," said Tempus. "Mine is the ability to manipulate time. My
magic comes from time but I am not a being of time. Just as you have the power
to heal but you are not a being of that magic. Believe me, my time will come
quickly enough. Once the Source is vanquished I will quickly follow."
"I will not be vanquished," said the Source arrogantly. "Mine is the
power of the underworld. It will sustain me though all around me are
vanquished."
"It is precisely because of that power that you will be the first to be
destroyed," said Tempus. "The magic that even now builds is so great that no
being of magic will be capable of withstanding it. You will be nothing more
than an ant in a typhoon."
"You mean Cole gave his life for nothing?" Phoebe cried, holding Cole's
lifeless body. "You have to do something. You're supposed to be demons and God
knows what else. There has to be something you can do."
"She's right," said Chris. "There has to be some way to prevent this."
"Why?" Tempus asked. "Because you are creatures of good? Because you
believe that good must triumph over evil? It is not a question of good and
evil. Morality has nothing to do with it. It is simply a matter of raw power.
Raw, uncontrolled, power. Against that, there is no defense."
"That's it," said Leo. "You said you couldn't do anything because your
power was blocked when Chris came back in time."
"Not precisely," said Tempus. "My power is blocked, yes. But it is not
because he has come to the past. It is a side affect, if you will, of remaining
in the past for too long. Without the necessary safeguards to prevent this
catastrophe."
'"Okay whatever," said Leo. "What if you had another power source? Some
form of magic your could tap into and draw from it? Would you be able to do
something then?"
"Perhaps," said Tempus. "But the magic would have to be substantial.
Manipulating time is not simply casting a spell and opening a doorway. There
are intricacies and nuances that you know nothing of. Which I have spent
centuries learning to control and manipulate. But if the power were great
enough I may be able to do something."
"Great," said Leo.
He walked over to Cole's body and hesitated for a moment. Then he reached
down and pulled the Book of Shadows from Cole's lifeless arms. He walked back
over and handed the book to Tempus.
"The magic in this book is substantial," said Leo. "If the Woogie could
tap into it's power, you should be able to. You can draw power from the book
and stop this."
"It is not that simple," said Tempus. "The Woogie drew power from the
book because it is not truly a creature. It is a sentient force. With the
timeline polluted as it is, the book would not make the distinction between its
power and that of the Woogie.
"But I am a living entity. That which makes me a demon would prevent me
from even touching the book. And even if I could draw power from the book, it
is but a fraction of what it once was. The power I would draw from it would be
minimal. Certainly nowhere near what I require."
"There has to be something," said Chris.
"There is," said the Source. "There is a power that has been locked away
for millennia. A power so great that neither side dares use it. A power that
can destroy all creatures."
"The Hollow," said Leo.
"The what?" asked Tiffany?
"There's no time to explain," said Leo. "Tempus, the Hollow would have
the power you need. It should have more than enough power to allow you to
manipulate time."
"Except that it cannot be reached," said Tempus. "As you know, White
Lighter, the Hollow was locked away long ago because of the danger it presents
to both good and evil. And to make sure that it was never again unleased, it has
been locked away in a place outside of time and space. There is no way to reach
it."
"There has to be something," said Paige standing next to Piper and Phoebe.
"Paige?" questioned Chris. "Where did you come from? Where's Prue?"
"Prue who?" Piper asked.
"Your sister, Prue," said Chris. "She was here just a minute ago."
"We don't have a sister named Prue," said Phoebe, wiping tears away.
"Paige is the youngest."
"Chris are you okay?" asked Leo. "You're starting to imagine people."
"No, he isn't," said Tempus. "I remember the eldest sister, too. It is
because of my connection to time. The eldest no longer exists. The changes are
coming more quickly now. There is only a matter of moments and soon we shall
all...."
Suddenly Tempus doubled over in pain. His cry of anguish reverberated
throughout the manor.
'Tempus, are you okay?" asked the Source.
"I can feel the changes in time," said Tempus. "You see what you have
done, you young fool? You have destroyed us all."
"No," said Chris. "You said you needed a power source. I know of one.
One that should have enough power to allow you to do anything you need to do. A
power source that even you should be able to tap into."
"Aside from the Hollow," said Tempus, "such power no longer exists. We
are all doomed and there is nothing we can do to stop it."
"Yes, there is a power that still exists that you can use," said Chris.
"The manor is still here. That proves the power still exists or it wouldn't be
standing here."
"Of course," said Leo, "why didn't I think of that? The manor was built
here for a reason. If it was gone, the timeline would have changed again and
there would have been no reason to build the manor here."
"Exactly," said Chris. "It's our only chance. Tempus, you have to tap
into the power that lies beneath the manor. You have to try to draw on the
power of the Nexus."
"There has to be something," said Leo.
"I told you," said Tempus, "when this fool returned to the past, he did
not take into account the myriad eddies and currents in time. When he opened
the vortex which allowed him to return to this time, he did nothing to
compensate for the added strain that vortex places on those eddies and currents.
Now they swell with magic they were not meant to contain. When they have
swelled to capacity, they shall burst as a damn bursts when the strain of the
water it contains becomes too great. That magic will then wash back through
time consuming all in its path."
"Wait a minute," said Chris. "You're still here. How come you haven't
been destroyed if magic connected with time is the first to be destroyed? Yours
is the magic connected with time. You should have been vanquished when the
spells were."
"I am a demon," said Tempus. "Mine is the ability to manipulate time. My
magic comes from time but I am not a being of time. Just as you have the power
to heal but you are not a being of that magic. Believe me, my time will come
quickly enough. Once the Source is vanquished I will quickly follow."
"I will not be vanquished," said the Source arrogantly. "Mine is the
power of the underworld. It will sustain me though all around me are
vanquished."
"It is precisely because of that power that you will be the first to be
destroyed," said Tempus. "The magic that even now builds is so great that no
being of magic will be capable of withstanding it. You will be nothing more
than an ant in a typhoon."
"You mean Cole gave his life for nothing?" Phoebe cried, holding Cole's
lifeless body. "You have to do something. You're supposed to be demons and God
knows what else. There has to be something you can do."
"She's right," said Chris. "There has to be some way to prevent this."
"Why?" Tempus asked. "Because you are creatures of good? Because you
believe that good must triumph over evil? It is not a question of good and
evil. Morality has nothing to do with it. It is simply a matter of raw power.
Raw, uncontrolled, power. Against that, there is no defense."
"That's it," said Leo. "You said you couldn't do anything because your
power was blocked when Chris came back in time."
"Not precisely," said Tempus. "My power is blocked, yes. But it is not
because he has come to the past. It is a side affect, if you will, of remaining
in the past for too long. Without the necessary safeguards to prevent this
catastrophe."
'"Okay whatever," said Leo. "What if you had another power source? Some
form of magic your could tap into and draw from it? Would you be able to do
something then?"
"Perhaps," said Tempus. "But the magic would have to be substantial.
Manipulating time is not simply casting a spell and opening a doorway. There
are intricacies and nuances that you know nothing of. Which I have spent
centuries learning to control and manipulate. But if the power were great
enough I may be able to do something."
"Great," said Leo.
He walked over to Cole's body and hesitated for a moment. Then he reached
down and pulled the Book of Shadows from Cole's lifeless arms. He walked back
over and handed the book to Tempus.
"The magic in this book is substantial," said Leo. "If the Woogie could
tap into it's power, you should be able to. You can draw power from the book
and stop this."
"It is not that simple," said Tempus. "The Woogie drew power from the
book because it is not truly a creature. It is a sentient force. With the
timeline polluted as it is, the book would not make the distinction between its
power and that of the Woogie.
"But I am a living entity. That which makes me a demon would prevent me
from even touching the book. And even if I could draw power from the book, it
is but a fraction of what it once was. The power I would draw from it would be
minimal. Certainly nowhere near what I require."
"There has to be something," said Chris.
"There is," said the Source. "There is a power that has been locked away
for millennia. A power so great that neither side dares use it. A power that
can destroy all creatures."
"The Hollow," said Leo.
"The what?" asked Tiffany?
"There's no time to explain," said Leo. "Tempus, the Hollow would have
the power you need. It should have more than enough power to allow you to
manipulate time."
"Except that it cannot be reached," said Tempus. "As you know, White
Lighter, the Hollow was locked away long ago because of the danger it presents
to both good and evil. And to make sure that it was never again unleased, it has
been locked away in a place outside of time and space. There is no way to reach
it."
"There has to be something," said Paige standing next to Piper and Phoebe.
"Paige?" questioned Chris. "Where did you come from? Where's Prue?"
"Prue who?" Piper asked.
"Your sister, Prue," said Chris. "She was here just a minute ago."
"We don't have a sister named Prue," said Phoebe, wiping tears away.
"Paige is the youngest."
"Chris are you okay?" asked Leo. "You're starting to imagine people."
"No, he isn't," said Tempus. "I remember the eldest sister, too. It is
because of my connection to time. The eldest no longer exists. The changes are
coming more quickly now. There is only a matter of moments and soon we shall
all...."
Suddenly Tempus doubled over in pain. His cry of anguish reverberated
throughout the manor.
'Tempus, are you okay?" asked the Source.
"I can feel the changes in time," said Tempus. "You see what you have
done, you young fool? You have destroyed us all."
"No," said Chris. "You said you needed a power source. I know of one.
One that should have enough power to allow you to do anything you need to do. A
power source that even you should be able to tap into."
"Aside from the Hollow," said Tempus, "such power no longer exists. We
are all doomed and there is nothing we can do to stop it."
"Yes, there is a power that still exists that you can use," said Chris.
"The manor is still here. That proves the power still exists or it wouldn't be
standing here."
"Of course," said Leo, "why didn't I think of that? The manor was built
here for a reason. If it was gone, the timeline would have changed again and
there would have been no reason to build the manor here."
"Exactly," said Chris. "It's our only chance. Tempus, you have to tap
into the power that lies beneath the manor. You have to try to draw on the
power of the Nexus."