Chapter 10 part 2
At the same time 11 members of Lugel Council gathered for their special meeting.
"It happened," Celina announced, "the link between the Chosen Two has been activated. They are ready to meet us."
"We did not expect this to happen so soon," Vladimir remarked.
"A lot of things happened recently that we did not expect," a tall black man ironically remarked. "We never thought that the Chosen Two would be Lugels. Our whole plan is in tartars."
"I think you are exaggerating, Sylvester," Celina stated confidently. "We just have to adjust it. And I think we better do it after the discussion with the Chosen Two. With regard to the fact that their link has been activated earlier than expected I think this just shows how special they are. And I believe that they will achieve things none of us could even thought possible."
"But they still have a long way to go both in their training and in increasing the link between them before the prophecy is fulfilled," Carlos stated. "And from what I can see there is still a lot of things that can go wrong. At the end of the day we are talking about two very strong characters that have too much mortal blood in them."
"Too much mortal blood is the essence which makes them what they are. And with regard to the pitfalls on the way it's our duty to help the Chosen Two to avoid them. And I think that it's time for us to start getting acquainted. They need to know the plan and the dangers on their way. Plus it will move them closer to their destiny."
"So who'll make the first contact?" a woman to her left asked.
"I would like to go myself." Celina continued. "And may be Vladimir can accompany me?" The male Lugel nodded indicating his agreement. "Is that agreed?"
Cole and Nicole enjoyed early lunch since they already skipped dinner last night and breakfast this morning. Suddenly a man and a woman appeared in the kitchen entrance. In an instant Nicole and Cole were next to each other both in a fighting stance. "Oh, I see you trained her well," the woman smiled.
Nicole could not believe her eyes, "Celina!" she cried out. "How? You are not..."
"A Lugel?" the French woman sat on the chair. "Yes, I am. Sorry I did not tell you the first time we met. But it was not a right place."
Cole shifted his gaze from one woman to another and then to the Eastern European looking man. Nicole decided it was time to explain. "I met her," she gestured to Celina, "a week ago, she came to uncle's Will house and introduced her as his neighbour."
"And I did not lie," Celina said calmly. "I was his neighbour. I was moved from France 25 years ago when your father died. And it was convenient at a time for me to settle next to your uncle. Everything I told you was the truth. I just did not tell you that I was a Lugel."
Nicole eyed the woman suspiciously and Cole decided it was time to interfere. "So what brings you here now?"
Celina looked at him with dark penetrating eyes. Half demon felt a little uncomfortable as if she was trying to reach his soul but he couldn't feel any attempt from her side to read his thoughts.
"Well, since the link between you two has been activated you are truly now the Chosen Two. So your pass begins here and it's time for us to get acquainted properly. This is Vladimir, he is a Lugel for Europe. There are 13 Lugels at any given time, it's roughly two for each continent, only Eurasia has 4. And one Lugel, who is the Secretary of the Council and keeps an eye on everything and is there for the emergences. For the past 25 years we were 12. But now things changed and the Council is complete again." Both Lugels smiled with the air of pride and content.
"So what's now?" Nicole asked.
"We want to tell you about the task ahead and also about the dangers you'll face." Vladimir answered.
"Well, my uncle has already told us about the task." Nicole remarked coolly. "We are supposed to broker the peace between the world of good and the world of evil by channelling activities of demons and witches into business, charities etc. We are just not very clear what practical steps have to be taken?"
The older Lugels exchanged quick glances and Celina proceeded.
"Our plan was that one of you will become the Source of All Evil." She glanced at Cole. "You'll know that we thought about you. You've already had experience and it would be just logical that you'll lead the Underworld." Half demon's expression quickly changed from total shock to sarcastic amusement, but before he could say anything Celina continued. "We know that you were possessed at a time but we also know that if Belthazor continued the way he was going before your encounter with the Charmed Ones he'd be the next Source. It was the matter of time. Anyway you had enough cloud behind you to pull it off in a short period of time. And you would be able to lead the Underworld with the iron fist."
Nicole was listening with the acute interest, "So what was my task supposed to be?"
"You were supposed to become the head elder and to sway the whitelighters and the council into agreeing to the deal."
"You sound as if we are not supposed to do it anymore." Nicole's eyes glimmered with suspicion.
"You're right," the male Lugels said firmly. "We can't do it anymore."
"Why not?" Cole was surprised. The plan Lugels suggested was actually quiet similar to what he expected.
"Because, as well as being the Chosen Two you're also Lugels," Celina answered.
"And that's bad because?" half demon looked at her puzzled.
"Two reasons. Lugels can't be involved in direct ruling of the worlds of good and evil. We stand above this worlds and changing it means breaking the balance of powers. Especially since you are the Chosen Two. And this brings us to the second reason. You are special because you have a special link. When you are together your powers amplify. You get 100, even 1000 times more powerful than you are on your own. You can do pretty much anything from reversing the time to moving it forward. But only together. This is the safe guard mechanism. The fact that you are Lugels means that you received powers from two belated Lugels, which were your father and your uncle," she looked at Nicole. "We don't have control over to whom whose powers are passed. What happened that Nicole received powers of her father and Cole received powers of William Schwarzlight. But Robert's powers were defective; they lacked invincibility, which he passed to his wife. This means that Nicole lacks it as well. So as long as you are together because of your link, Cole's invincibility is enough to protect both of you. And by together I mean physical contact. That's why we can't send one of you to the Underworld and another to the Elder's realm."
French woman moved her gaze from one young Lugel to another. Both Cole and Nicole were quiet trying to digest the information. Half demon was the first to speak up.
"Why don't one of you pass his or her invincibility to Nicole. Since she's one the Chosen Two, she'll need it more than any of you. And then we can stick to the plan."
Vladimir smiled sadly. "We can't. You need a special connection to be able to pass the powers. Robert could it because he was in love with Katherine, they were married and she was pregnant with their child therefore completing this link only after the birth of the child, which linked them forever. You two will be able to swap powers because you are linked as the Chosen Two. But if Cole passes his powers to Nicole he'll stop being invincible himself and that's does not help us. So you two have to stay together. There is no other choice. Plus as we said Lugels cannot directly rule the Underworld or Powers to be."
"But manipulating them is fine," Cole retorted sarcastically.
"Pretty much, yes." Vladimir smiled mischievously. "That's are the rules we are playing by."
Half demon snorted but did not say anything.
Nicole who was quiet so far asked. "So what's your plan now? How can we broker the peace without actually ruling both worlds?"
Celina shrugged her shoulder. "The only way we see it possible is to find somebody else who will rule the Underworld and Powers to be. You will be the force and the control behind them. But they need to be completely committed to their task."
Cole could not hide his scepticism any longer. "And who do you suggest we make a puppet Source of All Evil? I have to tell you that even if we get somebody to become the Source, what happens if they don't want to be the peace keeper after the inauguration? Of course we can kill him but then we'll need somebody else and there are no guarantees that this person would be any better. Plus it has to be a very strong individual to rule the Underworld and keep demons in submission."
Celina nodded in agreement to what he said, "We thought about this all and I think we found a perfect candidate."
"Who is it?" Nicole asked curiously.
"His mother," Vladimir pointed at Cole.
The latter's face paled, "I don't think it's a right time for jokes," Cole said in a deadly cold voice, his eyes flashing dangerously.
"I am not joking," the Lugels replied calmly. "Elizabeth Turner, also known as Belthora would be a perfect candidate to become the Source of All Evil."
"But she is dead," Nicole finally found her tongue. "She died thirty years ago." She looked at Cole for confirmation and he nodded.
"No," Celina shook her head. "She did not die. Raynor lied to you. He would not kill somebody whom he could use to manipulate and blackmail Belthazor. It's not his style to kill potential bait. Raynor feared your mother since she was getting really powerful and was a favourite of the Source himself. And with Belthazor by her side she was threatening to take over the Brotherhood and in time could take over the Underworld. So he used the old spell in the Grimour to strip your mother of her powers and block her memory. And for the past 30 years she lived in Washington as a mortal. She has no recollection of her life as a demon."
Nicole shot Cole a worried glance. His expression was unreadable. But by now she knew him well enough to understand that under his cool façade there was a volcano of emotions ready to erupt.
"But Raynor never mentioned it to me even when he was trying to sway me back to evil."
"Initially he did not want to, he thought he could influence you in other ways. He did not really fancy Belthazor reunited with his mother. And then he did not have a chance. You killed him too quickly. And he never told anybody else, even the Source. This spell could only be used by the Source himself. I think that Raynor fancied himself as the future Source and he had enough powers so he did not want to awake early suspicions. And that's why you did not find out when you were possessed by the Source. He did not know himself."
Cole shook his head trying to get his thoughts at least in some sort of order. All this was totally unbelievable. His mother was alive. And Lugels wanted her to become the Source of All Evil. He smiled to himself. She could totally do it. His relationships with his mother were always strange. He remembered that she was very affectionate when he was little. And even when after killing his father they moved to the Underworld she protected him and took care of him. When he became a little older she started training and teaching him everything he needed to know to become an upperlevel demon. And that's when she distanced herself. She became colder and rougher. He was very hurt then by the way his mother treated him but later he understood that she had to train him not to trust anyone and not to have any weak spots in his heart. It was not safe to have a heart in the Underworld. And in being distant and cold she helped him to survive and become the almighty demon Belthazor, the youngest member of the Brotherhood. At the age of 18 she got him a separate apartment and placed him under the mentorship of Raynor. Since then he saw her very rarely. She came to his ordaining into the Brotherhood of the Thorn. She had a proud smile on her lips but her eyes were different. There was a mixture of deep sadness, worry and helplessness in them. After that Cole became very busy with the Brotherhood. He saw his mother about once a year when they encountered during some ceremony in the Underworld. He knew that she was becoming ever more powerful working for the Source directly. He also remembered how she saved his life when a powerful coven of witches went after him for killing their leader. The coven made a deal with the vampire clan and Cole would certainly have been made into a vampire if his mother did not show up from nowhere, killed the vampire clan and then helped him to destroy what was left from the witchery coven. She never told him how she found out about it. But Cole had a suspicion that she was keeping an eye on him in his mission. This happened ten years before Raynor told him that his mother was vanquished by a couple of witches. At a time Cole buried his grieve in revenge and killed both witches and their child. He never really allowed himself to mourn his mother. It was not something demons did but he paid a dark priest a handsome fee for organizing a dark magic memorial for her. Now his mother was living in the mortal realm with no memory of what she was. She probably would not even recognise him. Cole snapped out of his thoughts. "I want to see her," he stated firmly looking at the older Lugels.
They exchanged quick glances and Vladimir said. "By all means, that's what we were planning on doing anyway. But you need to finish your training. Because you need to learn how to reverse the spell Raynor cast. It's a very tricky one. You need to break the block on her memory using telepathy first and only then use the spell to return her powers. And this requires ability to tap into the magical matter of the Universe and you still have to learnt how to do it. At the moment there is no point going, she won't even recognize you."
"I want to see her now," Cole repeated. "I need to know that she's fine. Then we can see about reversing that spell."
"You don't trust us?" Celina remarked.
"How did you guess?" Cole smiled wryly. "I had good mentors. Taught me not to trust anyone."
"Fine," Celina gave him a cool stare. "But you can't go alone. We all go. But don't start asking her any questions, she won't remember you and you can't reverse her spell until your training is finished."
"Fine," Cole replied with the similar stare.
"Then follow us," and the older Lugels disappeared.
Cole was about to blur after them when he felt Nicole's hand firmly grasping his arm. "Don't want to get lost," she said and they disappeared after the older couple. They reappeared in front of the small house in the posh neighbourhood of Washington DC.
"She lives here," Celina said. "We'll be waiting for you on the other side of the road." The older Lugels disappeared and left Cole and Nicole along on the porch.
"Do you want me to go as well?" Nicole looked at Cole. She still had her hand on his arm and the warmth radiating from it felt calming and supporting.
"No," he said. "Don't go." He turned to the door and knocked. Few seconds passed before the door swung open.
A tall beautiful woman in her late forties stood in the doorway a polite smile on her face. "Can I help you?" she asked in a smooth husky voice.
Cole was just staring at his mother. Or to be truthful to the shadow of a woman who used to be his mother. She looked to be in her mid to late forties, demonic blood prevented her from getting older but apart from that there was nothing of old Elizabeth left. The statue of power and confidence, which she possessed, was replaced by a slump shoulders and nervous putting hair behind ear gesture. Her usually tanned and toned skin was now pale and tired. But the biggest change was in her eyes. Cole remembered his mother's eyes: they were sparkly black, full of energy, strength, challenge and sometimes humour. Now they looked grey, almost dead, as if a grey mist has overcast them. And underneath this mist there were pain and confusion and the smile on her face was more forced than anything.
Nicole shot half demon a quick glance and realised that it was up to her to come up with cover up story. She feverishly thought about something to say, "We are from the local council conducting a survey about the maintenances issues in this area." A local authorities badge materialized in Nicole pocket and she flashed it at Cole's mother. "Would you mind if we ask you some questions?"
"By all means," the older woman opened the door wider allowing them to come in. Nicole and Cole entered the house. On the inside it was not big but looked very comfortable. They got seated in the living room.
"So what would you like to know?" Elizabeth asked.
Nicole gave Cole a discreet nudge in the ribs. He cleared his throat and asked.
"We'll just start with some basic questions. If you can tell us your name, how long you've been living here, do you have any family living with you?" he asked and Nicole retrieved a writing block and a pen she's just conjured from her pocket.
"My name is Elizabeth Raynolds," she smiled at Cole, her face suddenly lighting up. "I've been leaving here for the past 30 years, alone. I am a widow." Young Lugels exchanged surprised glances. Raynolds was the surname Raynor used when he was in the mortal realm.
"Sorry," Nicole managed to mumble the appropriate response.
"Don't worry," Elizabeth replied without even glancing at Nicole. She was staring at Cole, her eyes a complete turmoil of feelings. "What's your name?" she asked half demon. "You look vaguely familiar. Have we met before?"
Cole had to master every ounce of self control to keep his emotions in check. "My name is Cole Turner," he cleared his throat again. "And I have just moved to Washington DC."
Elizabeth eyes widened when she heard his name. She stared at Cole for a little longer and then shook her head. "I must have been mistaken." She shifted her glance to Nicole. "So what are you interested to know?"
After another 5 minutes of uninterested questions and bored answers young Lugels left the house. They joined the older couple and blurred back to the Lugel's realm.
"We need to restore her memory and return her powers." Cole stated firmly when they reappeared in the library.
"We will," Celina looked at Cole. "But please try to keep a cool head, Cole. At first you need to finish your training."
"Why can't you do it?" half demon demanded impatiently.
"Because it's much easier if you are related. That's why Raynor married your mother before he performed a power/memory stripping ritual."
"That's not possible. My mother would never marry Raynor."
"Of course she did not do it willingly. He used the old Seer's potions to drug your mother. That's why he managed to do it so easily."
Nicole who was quiet for a while sat next to Cole and put her hand on his shoulder. "Look, Cole, I know how you feel. We have just 3 days left of the training and then we'll be able to restore your mother's memory and also prepare what we have to say to her regarding our proposal for her to become the Source."
Cole gave her a stare. "And if she does not want to become the Source?"
Nicole withstood his stair and said in a firm voice, "Than we'll just let her get on with her life and find somebody else to do the job."
Cole shifted his gaze at older Lugels. "We can't force anybody to do the job against their will," he confirmed. "Just remember Cole that you had willingly accepted your destiny. You can't turn round now and decide that you want to spend the rest of your life doing something else."
Cole zapped the man with a furious glare. But Lugels eyes did not express anything accept concern. "I remember my promises very well," Cole stated coolly.
An uneasy silence fell in the library. Celina was the one to break it. "There is another thing we need to talk about." She took a deep breath. "After you leave this place, you are going to start working on your task. This will involve both of you working in the underworld and among witches and other magical creatures. It's important that you stay together since Cole's invincibility would protect you but only when you are in physical contact."
Both Cole and Nicole nodded and the latter remarked. "We remember all that. You made it perfectly clear earlier."
Celina smiled relieved and continued. "Well, then we just want to let you know that we think it would be safer if both of you live in Cole's penthouse, not in the Schwarzlight's mansion."
Nicole gulped for air and stared at the French woman. "What?" she asked.
"It's just Cole's penthouse is smaller so you'll be closer to each other than in the mansion." Vladimir explained calmly.
"What?" Nicole repeated. "You want us to live in one house?"
The older Lugel raised his eyebrows. "Of course. I thought that was obvious. It's not like you stopped being a Chosen Two when you get home. The danger is always there. So you have to stay together in order to avoid any accidents. You said yourself that you understood it."
"I understood that we have to work together not to live together." Nicole cried out. "It's out of the question."
"Why?" Celina seemed to be amused by Nicole's outburst. "You've already been living together for the past week and a half. Does not look that it caused any programs."
"There is a hell of a difference between a couple of weeks and indefinite."
"You don't have to live together indefinite, just until you broker the peace."
"It's still means several months. My uncle was talking about at least half a year and probably a year." Nicole glared at the older Lugels and then turned to Cole. "And why are you so quiet all over sudden? Tell them that we are not going to do it!"
Half demon shrugged his shoulders and tried to keep a straight face. "I think they have a point. We have a lot at stake here and if us living in one house can take some of the danger away, I think it's worth considering."
Nicole seared Cole with a deadly glare. "Well, I still disagree," she snapped. "We can't go everywhere together. It's ridiculous and not practical. And I don't want to talk about it." She turned on her hills and left the library.
Half demon was about to follow her when Celina stopped him. "Let me handle this," she said quietly.
Nicole went into the garden. She was fuming. She could not do it. These two weeks living under one roof with Cole was already too much, eating at one table with him, sleeping in the next room, spending the whole day with him. And especially after she learnt about his past and his love for Phoebe, Nicole did not want to get closer to him. She already felt her heart responding to him. Today when she saw his pained expression when he found out about his mother, her heart was flying to him, wanting to help and ease his pain. Her body ached for a touch of his body. She was falling for Cole, falling really bad. And they were supposed to spend a lot of time together in the next months. She could try to fight her feelings but she really needed some time apart from him. If they stayed in one house it was only a matter of time till her heart takes control over her mind and then it would be too late. She could not go through another heartache.
A sound of steps behind her snapped Nicole out of her thoughts. She saw Celina looking at her with a motherly expression. Nicole was not in the mood for an open-hearted conversation. She stared at Celina with cold eyes. The French woman shook her head and said, "You can be angry at me all you want but it's not going to change anything. You know yourself that you should stay with Cole. But for some reason you are not acting according to your own better judgement and I want to know why."
Nicole smiled wryly, "I am acting according to my better judgement".
Celina sighed, "That's what I thought."
Nicole did not answer but gave an older woman an annoyed look.
Celina sighed again. "Look, Nicole. I understand that you don't want to get too close to Cole. But this is not a reason to risk your safety. Besides why are you so determined to push Cole away?"
Nicole lost her temper, "I think it's none of your business what I do and why I do it!" she hissed. "You claimed to be friends with my uncle and that you cared about me. But in reality all you are interested in are your precious Chosen Two and their destiny. And you don't care what will happen to us afterwards. But I will have a life to lead and I would like to preserve some peace of mind and integrity of my heart."
Celina's face changed. Her usually pale face flashed pink, soft eyes glimmered dangerously. "You don't know anything about me and your uncle", she said abruptly. She took a deep breath and continued calmer, "You can believe me or not, it's your right. But I do care about you. I promised William that I will help you and I do everything possible to keep my promise."
Young Lugel felt guilty for her outburst, "Sorry," she mumbled.
"It's OK," Celina smiled. She came closer to Nicole and touched her shoulder. "I know you got burnt before but so did Cole. And that may be a good thing for both of you."
"How him being in love with his ex wife can be a good thing?"
"Do you think it's a real love? Cole never loved before he met Phoebe. She was his first love. You know yourself how the first love is: passionate, even obsessive. But it usually is neither the last love nor the lover ever lasting," she paused and continued quieter, "In the past I did a mistake of not taking a chance for love when I had it. And I've never got the second one. Don't push away your chance."
At the same time 11 members of Lugel Council gathered for their special meeting.
"It happened," Celina announced, "the link between the Chosen Two has been activated. They are ready to meet us."
"We did not expect this to happen so soon," Vladimir remarked.
"A lot of things happened recently that we did not expect," a tall black man ironically remarked. "We never thought that the Chosen Two would be Lugels. Our whole plan is in tartars."
"I think you are exaggerating, Sylvester," Celina stated confidently. "We just have to adjust it. And I think we better do it after the discussion with the Chosen Two. With regard to the fact that their link has been activated earlier than expected I think this just shows how special they are. And I believe that they will achieve things none of us could even thought possible."
"But they still have a long way to go both in their training and in increasing the link between them before the prophecy is fulfilled," Carlos stated. "And from what I can see there is still a lot of things that can go wrong. At the end of the day we are talking about two very strong characters that have too much mortal blood in them."
"Too much mortal blood is the essence which makes them what they are. And with regard to the pitfalls on the way it's our duty to help the Chosen Two to avoid them. And I think that it's time for us to start getting acquainted. They need to know the plan and the dangers on their way. Plus it will move them closer to their destiny."
"So who'll make the first contact?" a woman to her left asked.
"I would like to go myself." Celina continued. "And may be Vladimir can accompany me?" The male Lugel nodded indicating his agreement. "Is that agreed?"
Cole and Nicole enjoyed early lunch since they already skipped dinner last night and breakfast this morning. Suddenly a man and a woman appeared in the kitchen entrance. In an instant Nicole and Cole were next to each other both in a fighting stance. "Oh, I see you trained her well," the woman smiled.
Nicole could not believe her eyes, "Celina!" she cried out. "How? You are not..."
"A Lugel?" the French woman sat on the chair. "Yes, I am. Sorry I did not tell you the first time we met. But it was not a right place."
Cole shifted his gaze from one woman to another and then to the Eastern European looking man. Nicole decided it was time to explain. "I met her," she gestured to Celina, "a week ago, she came to uncle's Will house and introduced her as his neighbour."
"And I did not lie," Celina said calmly. "I was his neighbour. I was moved from France 25 years ago when your father died. And it was convenient at a time for me to settle next to your uncle. Everything I told you was the truth. I just did not tell you that I was a Lugel."
Nicole eyed the woman suspiciously and Cole decided it was time to interfere. "So what brings you here now?"
Celina looked at him with dark penetrating eyes. Half demon felt a little uncomfortable as if she was trying to reach his soul but he couldn't feel any attempt from her side to read his thoughts.
"Well, since the link between you two has been activated you are truly now the Chosen Two. So your pass begins here and it's time for us to get acquainted properly. This is Vladimir, he is a Lugel for Europe. There are 13 Lugels at any given time, it's roughly two for each continent, only Eurasia has 4. And one Lugel, who is the Secretary of the Council and keeps an eye on everything and is there for the emergences. For the past 25 years we were 12. But now things changed and the Council is complete again." Both Lugels smiled with the air of pride and content.
"So what's now?" Nicole asked.
"We want to tell you about the task ahead and also about the dangers you'll face." Vladimir answered.
"Well, my uncle has already told us about the task." Nicole remarked coolly. "We are supposed to broker the peace between the world of good and the world of evil by channelling activities of demons and witches into business, charities etc. We are just not very clear what practical steps have to be taken?"
The older Lugels exchanged quick glances and Celina proceeded.
"Our plan was that one of you will become the Source of All Evil." She glanced at Cole. "You'll know that we thought about you. You've already had experience and it would be just logical that you'll lead the Underworld." Half demon's expression quickly changed from total shock to sarcastic amusement, but before he could say anything Celina continued. "We know that you were possessed at a time but we also know that if Belthazor continued the way he was going before your encounter with the Charmed Ones he'd be the next Source. It was the matter of time. Anyway you had enough cloud behind you to pull it off in a short period of time. And you would be able to lead the Underworld with the iron fist."
Nicole was listening with the acute interest, "So what was my task supposed to be?"
"You were supposed to become the head elder and to sway the whitelighters and the council into agreeing to the deal."
"You sound as if we are not supposed to do it anymore." Nicole's eyes glimmered with suspicion.
"You're right," the male Lugels said firmly. "We can't do it anymore."
"Why not?" Cole was surprised. The plan Lugels suggested was actually quiet similar to what he expected.
"Because, as well as being the Chosen Two you're also Lugels," Celina answered.
"And that's bad because?" half demon looked at her puzzled.
"Two reasons. Lugels can't be involved in direct ruling of the worlds of good and evil. We stand above this worlds and changing it means breaking the balance of powers. Especially since you are the Chosen Two. And this brings us to the second reason. You are special because you have a special link. When you are together your powers amplify. You get 100, even 1000 times more powerful than you are on your own. You can do pretty much anything from reversing the time to moving it forward. But only together. This is the safe guard mechanism. The fact that you are Lugels means that you received powers from two belated Lugels, which were your father and your uncle," she looked at Nicole. "We don't have control over to whom whose powers are passed. What happened that Nicole received powers of her father and Cole received powers of William Schwarzlight. But Robert's powers were defective; they lacked invincibility, which he passed to his wife. This means that Nicole lacks it as well. So as long as you are together because of your link, Cole's invincibility is enough to protect both of you. And by together I mean physical contact. That's why we can't send one of you to the Underworld and another to the Elder's realm."
French woman moved her gaze from one young Lugel to another. Both Cole and Nicole were quiet trying to digest the information. Half demon was the first to speak up.
"Why don't one of you pass his or her invincibility to Nicole. Since she's one the Chosen Two, she'll need it more than any of you. And then we can stick to the plan."
Vladimir smiled sadly. "We can't. You need a special connection to be able to pass the powers. Robert could it because he was in love with Katherine, they were married and she was pregnant with their child therefore completing this link only after the birth of the child, which linked them forever. You two will be able to swap powers because you are linked as the Chosen Two. But if Cole passes his powers to Nicole he'll stop being invincible himself and that's does not help us. So you two have to stay together. There is no other choice. Plus as we said Lugels cannot directly rule the Underworld or Powers to be."
"But manipulating them is fine," Cole retorted sarcastically.
"Pretty much, yes." Vladimir smiled mischievously. "That's are the rules we are playing by."
Half demon snorted but did not say anything.
Nicole who was quiet so far asked. "So what's your plan now? How can we broker the peace without actually ruling both worlds?"
Celina shrugged her shoulder. "The only way we see it possible is to find somebody else who will rule the Underworld and Powers to be. You will be the force and the control behind them. But they need to be completely committed to their task."
Cole could not hide his scepticism any longer. "And who do you suggest we make a puppet Source of All Evil? I have to tell you that even if we get somebody to become the Source, what happens if they don't want to be the peace keeper after the inauguration? Of course we can kill him but then we'll need somebody else and there are no guarantees that this person would be any better. Plus it has to be a very strong individual to rule the Underworld and keep demons in submission."
Celina nodded in agreement to what he said, "We thought about this all and I think we found a perfect candidate."
"Who is it?" Nicole asked curiously.
"His mother," Vladimir pointed at Cole.
The latter's face paled, "I don't think it's a right time for jokes," Cole said in a deadly cold voice, his eyes flashing dangerously.
"I am not joking," the Lugels replied calmly. "Elizabeth Turner, also known as Belthora would be a perfect candidate to become the Source of All Evil."
"But she is dead," Nicole finally found her tongue. "She died thirty years ago." She looked at Cole for confirmation and he nodded.
"No," Celina shook her head. "She did not die. Raynor lied to you. He would not kill somebody whom he could use to manipulate and blackmail Belthazor. It's not his style to kill potential bait. Raynor feared your mother since she was getting really powerful and was a favourite of the Source himself. And with Belthazor by her side she was threatening to take over the Brotherhood and in time could take over the Underworld. So he used the old spell in the Grimour to strip your mother of her powers and block her memory. And for the past 30 years she lived in Washington as a mortal. She has no recollection of her life as a demon."
Nicole shot Cole a worried glance. His expression was unreadable. But by now she knew him well enough to understand that under his cool façade there was a volcano of emotions ready to erupt.
"But Raynor never mentioned it to me even when he was trying to sway me back to evil."
"Initially he did not want to, he thought he could influence you in other ways. He did not really fancy Belthazor reunited with his mother. And then he did not have a chance. You killed him too quickly. And he never told anybody else, even the Source. This spell could only be used by the Source himself. I think that Raynor fancied himself as the future Source and he had enough powers so he did not want to awake early suspicions. And that's why you did not find out when you were possessed by the Source. He did not know himself."
Cole shook his head trying to get his thoughts at least in some sort of order. All this was totally unbelievable. His mother was alive. And Lugels wanted her to become the Source of All Evil. He smiled to himself. She could totally do it. His relationships with his mother were always strange. He remembered that she was very affectionate when he was little. And even when after killing his father they moved to the Underworld she protected him and took care of him. When he became a little older she started training and teaching him everything he needed to know to become an upperlevel demon. And that's when she distanced herself. She became colder and rougher. He was very hurt then by the way his mother treated him but later he understood that she had to train him not to trust anyone and not to have any weak spots in his heart. It was not safe to have a heart in the Underworld. And in being distant and cold she helped him to survive and become the almighty demon Belthazor, the youngest member of the Brotherhood. At the age of 18 she got him a separate apartment and placed him under the mentorship of Raynor. Since then he saw her very rarely. She came to his ordaining into the Brotherhood of the Thorn. She had a proud smile on her lips but her eyes were different. There was a mixture of deep sadness, worry and helplessness in them. After that Cole became very busy with the Brotherhood. He saw his mother about once a year when they encountered during some ceremony in the Underworld. He knew that she was becoming ever more powerful working for the Source directly. He also remembered how she saved his life when a powerful coven of witches went after him for killing their leader. The coven made a deal with the vampire clan and Cole would certainly have been made into a vampire if his mother did not show up from nowhere, killed the vampire clan and then helped him to destroy what was left from the witchery coven. She never told him how she found out about it. But Cole had a suspicion that she was keeping an eye on him in his mission. This happened ten years before Raynor told him that his mother was vanquished by a couple of witches. At a time Cole buried his grieve in revenge and killed both witches and their child. He never really allowed himself to mourn his mother. It was not something demons did but he paid a dark priest a handsome fee for organizing a dark magic memorial for her. Now his mother was living in the mortal realm with no memory of what she was. She probably would not even recognise him. Cole snapped out of his thoughts. "I want to see her," he stated firmly looking at the older Lugels.
They exchanged quick glances and Vladimir said. "By all means, that's what we were planning on doing anyway. But you need to finish your training. Because you need to learn how to reverse the spell Raynor cast. It's a very tricky one. You need to break the block on her memory using telepathy first and only then use the spell to return her powers. And this requires ability to tap into the magical matter of the Universe and you still have to learnt how to do it. At the moment there is no point going, she won't even recognize you."
"I want to see her now," Cole repeated. "I need to know that she's fine. Then we can see about reversing that spell."
"You don't trust us?" Celina remarked.
"How did you guess?" Cole smiled wryly. "I had good mentors. Taught me not to trust anyone."
"Fine," Celina gave him a cool stare. "But you can't go alone. We all go. But don't start asking her any questions, she won't remember you and you can't reverse her spell until your training is finished."
"Fine," Cole replied with the similar stare.
"Then follow us," and the older Lugels disappeared.
Cole was about to blur after them when he felt Nicole's hand firmly grasping his arm. "Don't want to get lost," she said and they disappeared after the older couple. They reappeared in front of the small house in the posh neighbourhood of Washington DC.
"She lives here," Celina said. "We'll be waiting for you on the other side of the road." The older Lugels disappeared and left Cole and Nicole along on the porch.
"Do you want me to go as well?" Nicole looked at Cole. She still had her hand on his arm and the warmth radiating from it felt calming and supporting.
"No," he said. "Don't go." He turned to the door and knocked. Few seconds passed before the door swung open.
A tall beautiful woman in her late forties stood in the doorway a polite smile on her face. "Can I help you?" she asked in a smooth husky voice.
Cole was just staring at his mother. Or to be truthful to the shadow of a woman who used to be his mother. She looked to be in her mid to late forties, demonic blood prevented her from getting older but apart from that there was nothing of old Elizabeth left. The statue of power and confidence, which she possessed, was replaced by a slump shoulders and nervous putting hair behind ear gesture. Her usually tanned and toned skin was now pale and tired. But the biggest change was in her eyes. Cole remembered his mother's eyes: they were sparkly black, full of energy, strength, challenge and sometimes humour. Now they looked grey, almost dead, as if a grey mist has overcast them. And underneath this mist there were pain and confusion and the smile on her face was more forced than anything.
Nicole shot half demon a quick glance and realised that it was up to her to come up with cover up story. She feverishly thought about something to say, "We are from the local council conducting a survey about the maintenances issues in this area." A local authorities badge materialized in Nicole pocket and she flashed it at Cole's mother. "Would you mind if we ask you some questions?"
"By all means," the older woman opened the door wider allowing them to come in. Nicole and Cole entered the house. On the inside it was not big but looked very comfortable. They got seated in the living room.
"So what would you like to know?" Elizabeth asked.
Nicole gave Cole a discreet nudge in the ribs. He cleared his throat and asked.
"We'll just start with some basic questions. If you can tell us your name, how long you've been living here, do you have any family living with you?" he asked and Nicole retrieved a writing block and a pen she's just conjured from her pocket.
"My name is Elizabeth Raynolds," she smiled at Cole, her face suddenly lighting up. "I've been leaving here for the past 30 years, alone. I am a widow." Young Lugels exchanged surprised glances. Raynolds was the surname Raynor used when he was in the mortal realm.
"Sorry," Nicole managed to mumble the appropriate response.
"Don't worry," Elizabeth replied without even glancing at Nicole. She was staring at Cole, her eyes a complete turmoil of feelings. "What's your name?" she asked half demon. "You look vaguely familiar. Have we met before?"
Cole had to master every ounce of self control to keep his emotions in check. "My name is Cole Turner," he cleared his throat again. "And I have just moved to Washington DC."
Elizabeth eyes widened when she heard his name. She stared at Cole for a little longer and then shook her head. "I must have been mistaken." She shifted her glance to Nicole. "So what are you interested to know?"
After another 5 minutes of uninterested questions and bored answers young Lugels left the house. They joined the older couple and blurred back to the Lugel's realm.
"We need to restore her memory and return her powers." Cole stated firmly when they reappeared in the library.
"We will," Celina looked at Cole. "But please try to keep a cool head, Cole. At first you need to finish your training."
"Why can't you do it?" half demon demanded impatiently.
"Because it's much easier if you are related. That's why Raynor married your mother before he performed a power/memory stripping ritual."
"That's not possible. My mother would never marry Raynor."
"Of course she did not do it willingly. He used the old Seer's potions to drug your mother. That's why he managed to do it so easily."
Nicole who was quiet for a while sat next to Cole and put her hand on his shoulder. "Look, Cole, I know how you feel. We have just 3 days left of the training and then we'll be able to restore your mother's memory and also prepare what we have to say to her regarding our proposal for her to become the Source."
Cole gave her a stare. "And if she does not want to become the Source?"
Nicole withstood his stair and said in a firm voice, "Than we'll just let her get on with her life and find somebody else to do the job."
Cole shifted his gaze at older Lugels. "We can't force anybody to do the job against their will," he confirmed. "Just remember Cole that you had willingly accepted your destiny. You can't turn round now and decide that you want to spend the rest of your life doing something else."
Cole zapped the man with a furious glare. But Lugels eyes did not express anything accept concern. "I remember my promises very well," Cole stated coolly.
An uneasy silence fell in the library. Celina was the one to break it. "There is another thing we need to talk about." She took a deep breath. "After you leave this place, you are going to start working on your task. This will involve both of you working in the underworld and among witches and other magical creatures. It's important that you stay together since Cole's invincibility would protect you but only when you are in physical contact."
Both Cole and Nicole nodded and the latter remarked. "We remember all that. You made it perfectly clear earlier."
Celina smiled relieved and continued. "Well, then we just want to let you know that we think it would be safer if both of you live in Cole's penthouse, not in the Schwarzlight's mansion."
Nicole gulped for air and stared at the French woman. "What?" she asked.
"It's just Cole's penthouse is smaller so you'll be closer to each other than in the mansion." Vladimir explained calmly.
"What?" Nicole repeated. "You want us to live in one house?"
The older Lugel raised his eyebrows. "Of course. I thought that was obvious. It's not like you stopped being a Chosen Two when you get home. The danger is always there. So you have to stay together in order to avoid any accidents. You said yourself that you understood it."
"I understood that we have to work together not to live together." Nicole cried out. "It's out of the question."
"Why?" Celina seemed to be amused by Nicole's outburst. "You've already been living together for the past week and a half. Does not look that it caused any programs."
"There is a hell of a difference between a couple of weeks and indefinite."
"You don't have to live together indefinite, just until you broker the peace."
"It's still means several months. My uncle was talking about at least half a year and probably a year." Nicole glared at the older Lugels and then turned to Cole. "And why are you so quiet all over sudden? Tell them that we are not going to do it!"
Half demon shrugged his shoulders and tried to keep a straight face. "I think they have a point. We have a lot at stake here and if us living in one house can take some of the danger away, I think it's worth considering."
Nicole seared Cole with a deadly glare. "Well, I still disagree," she snapped. "We can't go everywhere together. It's ridiculous and not practical. And I don't want to talk about it." She turned on her hills and left the library.
Half demon was about to follow her when Celina stopped him. "Let me handle this," she said quietly.
Nicole went into the garden. She was fuming. She could not do it. These two weeks living under one roof with Cole was already too much, eating at one table with him, sleeping in the next room, spending the whole day with him. And especially after she learnt about his past and his love for Phoebe, Nicole did not want to get closer to him. She already felt her heart responding to him. Today when she saw his pained expression when he found out about his mother, her heart was flying to him, wanting to help and ease his pain. Her body ached for a touch of his body. She was falling for Cole, falling really bad. And they were supposed to spend a lot of time together in the next months. She could try to fight her feelings but she really needed some time apart from him. If they stayed in one house it was only a matter of time till her heart takes control over her mind and then it would be too late. She could not go through another heartache.
A sound of steps behind her snapped Nicole out of her thoughts. She saw Celina looking at her with a motherly expression. Nicole was not in the mood for an open-hearted conversation. She stared at Celina with cold eyes. The French woman shook her head and said, "You can be angry at me all you want but it's not going to change anything. You know yourself that you should stay with Cole. But for some reason you are not acting according to your own better judgement and I want to know why."
Nicole smiled wryly, "I am acting according to my better judgement".
Celina sighed, "That's what I thought."
Nicole did not answer but gave an older woman an annoyed look.
Celina sighed again. "Look, Nicole. I understand that you don't want to get too close to Cole. But this is not a reason to risk your safety. Besides why are you so determined to push Cole away?"
Nicole lost her temper, "I think it's none of your business what I do and why I do it!" she hissed. "You claimed to be friends with my uncle and that you cared about me. But in reality all you are interested in are your precious Chosen Two and their destiny. And you don't care what will happen to us afterwards. But I will have a life to lead and I would like to preserve some peace of mind and integrity of my heart."
Celina's face changed. Her usually pale face flashed pink, soft eyes glimmered dangerously. "You don't know anything about me and your uncle", she said abruptly. She took a deep breath and continued calmer, "You can believe me or not, it's your right. But I do care about you. I promised William that I will help you and I do everything possible to keep my promise."
Young Lugel felt guilty for her outburst, "Sorry," she mumbled.
"It's OK," Celina smiled. She came closer to Nicole and touched her shoulder. "I know you got burnt before but so did Cole. And that may be a good thing for both of you."
"How him being in love with his ex wife can be a good thing?"
"Do you think it's a real love? Cole never loved before he met Phoebe. She was his first love. You know yourself how the first love is: passionate, even obsessive. But it usually is neither the last love nor the lover ever lasting," she paused and continued quieter, "In the past I did a mistake of not taking a chance for love when I had it. And I've never got the second one. Don't push away your chance."