ELEVEN
A fireball passed through the Darkness and exploded on the wall behind it. It was the third one the Source had tried to use on the Darkness. But being a cloudlike creature, the attacks simply passed through it without causing any harm.
"Failure," screamed the Source. "How could you have failed? You use your opponents' weaknesses against them. It is not possible for you to fail."
"They were not alone," hissed the Darkness. "They had assistance. There was a demon."
"Belthazor," hissed the Source. "Will I never be rid of that traitor? Must he always plague me?"
"I have no power over demons," hissed the Darkness.
"Leave me," said the Source. "Return to your cell. You will wait there until I send for you again."
The Darkness began to float out of the cavern. As it did, the Seer entered.
"You are vexed, my lord," said the Seer.
"You plan has failed," said the Source. "The Darkness has been defeated. Belthazor assisted the witches. Must I forever be burden with this scourge? Is there no way that I can defeat my enemies without the constant interference by this traitor?"
"Do not worry, my lord," said the Seer. "I have had another vision. Very soon you shall not have to worry about Belthazor or the Charmed Ones. I have foreseen that you will be rid of them forever."
"How?" the Source demanded. "How will I end those who task me most?"
"I have not foreseen how, my lord," said the Seer. "I have only foreseen that you will very soon be rid of your most hated foes. Should I have another vision, I shall, of course, inform you immediately."
"How?" the Source demanded again, speaking out loud to himself. "How will I accomplish this? The Darkness has failed. There are few powers in the underworld as great as the Darkness. How is it that I will be able to defeat my foes?"
The Seer turned and left the Source alone in the chamber. She smiled to herself. She had told the Source the truth about her vision. He would soon be rid of his most hated enemies. She had simply neglected to tell him all that she had foreseen.
Her vision had not specifically been about him. Instead, her vision had been about Belthazor. Or more correctly, about Cole Turner. A fine distinction, but one that was necessary. She had foreseen Cole standing in a chamber with his hand on the Grimoire. That could only mean one thing. An ascension ceremony. Which meant that he was becoming the new Source. If that were true, the old Source had been vanquished.
So, from one perspective, the Source would be rid of his most hated foes. Once he was vanquished, he would have no more worries. He had ruled the underworld for five hundred years, give or take. And for most of that time he had been a ruthless, efficient ruler. Exactly what was needed in the underworld.
But for four years he had become more and more obsessed with the Charmed Ones. While they were formidable opponents, they weren't the only foes for the demon world. Their destruction would prove a great boon to the underworld. But especially lately, he was devoting more and more resources to them alone. Resources that could be better used elsewhere.
It was time for some "new blood" in the leadership. As a female, she would never be accepted as the new Source. But Belthazor would. Even with his human half, most of the demonic leadership would eventually accept him as their new leader. And she could control the underworld through him.
It was a dangerous game she was playing. And she had been playing it for some time. Giving the Source only parts of her visions so that he would follow her plans instead of his own. He had relied on her for so long he couldn't think she would betray him.
She didn't know how much longer the Source would rule. But she was sure of one thing. It would be the Charmed Ones that vanquished him. Only they had the power necessary to oppose him. They had only to wait for him to make a mistake. A mistake so disastrous that everyone would think him insane. At the moment, she wasn't sure what that mistake would be. But she knew it wouldn't be long.
As the Seer contemplated what she thought the Sources' next move would be, he was in his private chamber. All ready the beginnings of a plan had begun to form in his mind. He was sure the Darkness would destroy his enemies. But it had failed him as all his underlings always failed him.
But his new plan couldn't fail. He had finally realized why his plans had always failed in the past. He relied too much on his underlings. If he was to destroy the Charmed Ones, he couldn't leave it up to an underling. He would have to do it himself. That way there would be no mistakes.
He even knew how he would do it. They were much too powerful to face them head on. He would need something to give him an edge over them. And there was only one thing that would be powerful enough to vanquish his foes. He would have to do the unthinkable. He would have to release The Hollow.
The End
If you've enjoyed this story, you can find more "Charmed" stories at my website, You can also post your own "Charmed" stories if you like to write fan fiction.
A fireball passed through the Darkness and exploded on the wall behind it. It was the third one the Source had tried to use on the Darkness. But being a cloudlike creature, the attacks simply passed through it without causing any harm.
"Failure," screamed the Source. "How could you have failed? You use your opponents' weaknesses against them. It is not possible for you to fail."
"They were not alone," hissed the Darkness. "They had assistance. There was a demon."
"Belthazor," hissed the Source. "Will I never be rid of that traitor? Must he always plague me?"
"I have no power over demons," hissed the Darkness.
"Leave me," said the Source. "Return to your cell. You will wait there until I send for you again."
The Darkness began to float out of the cavern. As it did, the Seer entered.
"You are vexed, my lord," said the Seer.
"You plan has failed," said the Source. "The Darkness has been defeated. Belthazor assisted the witches. Must I forever be burden with this scourge? Is there no way that I can defeat my enemies without the constant interference by this traitor?"
"Do not worry, my lord," said the Seer. "I have had another vision. Very soon you shall not have to worry about Belthazor or the Charmed Ones. I have foreseen that you will be rid of them forever."
"How?" the Source demanded. "How will I end those who task me most?"
"I have not foreseen how, my lord," said the Seer. "I have only foreseen that you will very soon be rid of your most hated foes. Should I have another vision, I shall, of course, inform you immediately."
"How?" the Source demanded again, speaking out loud to himself. "How will I accomplish this? The Darkness has failed. There are few powers in the underworld as great as the Darkness. How is it that I will be able to defeat my foes?"
The Seer turned and left the Source alone in the chamber. She smiled to herself. She had told the Source the truth about her vision. He would soon be rid of his most hated enemies. She had simply neglected to tell him all that she had foreseen.
Her vision had not specifically been about him. Instead, her vision had been about Belthazor. Or more correctly, about Cole Turner. A fine distinction, but one that was necessary. She had foreseen Cole standing in a chamber with his hand on the Grimoire. That could only mean one thing. An ascension ceremony. Which meant that he was becoming the new Source. If that were true, the old Source had been vanquished.
So, from one perspective, the Source would be rid of his most hated foes. Once he was vanquished, he would have no more worries. He had ruled the underworld for five hundred years, give or take. And for most of that time he had been a ruthless, efficient ruler. Exactly what was needed in the underworld.
But for four years he had become more and more obsessed with the Charmed Ones. While they were formidable opponents, they weren't the only foes for the demon world. Their destruction would prove a great boon to the underworld. But especially lately, he was devoting more and more resources to them alone. Resources that could be better used elsewhere.
It was time for some "new blood" in the leadership. As a female, she would never be accepted as the new Source. But Belthazor would. Even with his human half, most of the demonic leadership would eventually accept him as their new leader. And she could control the underworld through him.
It was a dangerous game she was playing. And she had been playing it for some time. Giving the Source only parts of her visions so that he would follow her plans instead of his own. He had relied on her for so long he couldn't think she would betray him.
She didn't know how much longer the Source would rule. But she was sure of one thing. It would be the Charmed Ones that vanquished him. Only they had the power necessary to oppose him. They had only to wait for him to make a mistake. A mistake so disastrous that everyone would think him insane. At the moment, she wasn't sure what that mistake would be. But she knew it wouldn't be long.
As the Seer contemplated what she thought the Sources' next move would be, he was in his private chamber. All ready the beginnings of a plan had begun to form in his mind. He was sure the Darkness would destroy his enemies. But it had failed him as all his underlings always failed him.
But his new plan couldn't fail. He had finally realized why his plans had always failed in the past. He relied too much on his underlings. If he was to destroy the Charmed Ones, he couldn't leave it up to an underling. He would have to do it himself. That way there would be no mistakes.
He even knew how he would do it. They were much too powerful to face them head on. He would need something to give him an edge over them. And there was only one thing that would be powerful enough to vanquish his foes. He would have to do the unthinkable. He would have to release The Hollow.
The End
If you've enjoyed this story, you can find more "Charmed" stories at my website, You can also post your own "Charmed" stories if you like to write fan fiction.