Hi everybody. Hope you are still enjoying the story. Here is the next chapter. Please R&R.
Chapter 20Leo sat on the couch in a state of complete shock. He could not believe that Cole was dead. It was not possible. Phoebe's voice echoed his thoughts.
"Cole can't die," she stared at Darryl with huge eyes filled with fear, disbelief and pain, "He is invincible."
The policeman shook his head, "He passed his invincibility to Nicole," he explained gently.
Her hopes shuttered Phoebe could not contain herself any longer, she buried her face in her hands and both men could hear the muffled sobs.
Leo rubbed his face, his mind completely overwhelmed with shock, emotions and feelings. He knew that he had to do something, but what? Only now he realized how great it was to work in a team with Cole and Nicole, and even Elizabeth. They were always there to discuss the situation, give advice and share the responsibility, even with the Titans, when he committed such a crime... Leo shook his head, he could not think about it now. He had to try to clear his head. With Piper and their newborn son safely asleep upstairs he did not have to worry about them. Henric had orbed down about an hour ago to inform him that the Elder's realm was now in relative order. The whitelighters were sent away to keep an eye on their charges and tomorrow there was supposed to be a meeting to elect new members of the Council. Leo was planning to orb to the Penthouse later this evening and talk to Cole and Nicole about what steps should be taken. But now... With Cole dead and Nicole... God knows where she was and what she was going to do. According to what Darryl told him, Nicole was not herself and considering how powerful she was, her grief could be very dangerous for the rest of the planet.
Phoebe's voice snapped him out of his thoughts, "There must be a way to bring him back..." Leo shot her a puzzled look. Her eyes sparkled anxiously, "Just like we did when Piper died by turning the time backwards." When he did not answer, she continued to develop her idea. "I've seen with my own eyes that Cole's mother is still alive. She is an upper level demon. I am sure she can convince the new Source to save Cole especially considering that he's working for the Underworld again."
Leo shook his head, "Cole's mother is the new Source," he explained quietly.
Phoebe's face lit up, "Well, then it's even better. I am sure she would want to save him. And she can just order Tempus."
"Phoebe, it's not that simple," Leo tried to reason with her. "I am sure that if it had been that easy, Nicole would not have been in such distress."
"She might have not thought about it," Phoebe objected and got up from her seat. "Let's go."
Her brother-in-law gave her a confused look, "Go where?"
"To the Penthouse," she replied impatiently, "Or wherever Nicole and Cole's mother are."
"That's not a good idea, Phoebe," Leo said sternly, "Nicole and Elizabeth probably want to be alone at the moment. We can't just barge on them, plus I highly doubt that they are in the Penthouse and we can't go to the Underworld."
Phoebe shrugged her shoulders, "Of course we can...We've been to the Underworld before and even if we are caught we would ask them to bring us to the Source because this time it's exactly what we want. And about them wanting to be alone-it's a complete nonsense, we are not coming for a social visit. We are talking about saving Cole."
She noticed his hesitation and fixed him with a hard stare, "If you don't take me Leo, I will go there myself. I know just the right spell for it and you know me well enough to understand that I will use it."
Leo cursed silently. Phoebe was always stubborn but when it came to Cole there was no way to sway her. "Fine," he muttered finally, "but first at least try to scry for Nicole. If she is somewhere in the mortal realm our task will be a lot easier."
Phoebe nodded and rushed out of the room. A minute later she returned with the map of the United States in her hand. "I don't have anything of hers," she told Leo. "I would need at least something to guide the crystal."
Leo pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket and gave it to Phoebe, "This should do," he told her remembering how he went to the garden to tell Cole and Nicole that the Charmed Ones had been successfully transferred into the Goddess and he managed to trip over and had his hand covered in dirt. That's when Nicole gave him her handkerchief.
Phoebe did not ask any questions and started scrying. After five minutes she dropped the crystal on the table. "It does not work," she announced. "She either is not in the USA or..." She stopped mid sentence interrupted by the sound of astral projection and the object of her efforts appeared in the middle of the room.
"She is right in front of you," Nicole finished calmly. The middle Halliwell stood still gaping at the woman she had been hating for the past 7 months.
Nicole looked visibly calm but Leo had learnt enough about her to notice how tensed and strained she was. He could not decide whether he should offer her his condolences when Nicole turned to Darryl.
"Inspector, I am sorry you had to witness what happened earlier. It's way more than any human or even magical being should be allowed to see. If you would like we can later arrange that you won't have any memories left from this day." Her lips twisted into a curt smile, which immediately disappeared. "But now I need to speak to Leo and miss Halliwell and if you don't mind I would like to do it in private." She noticed the warning look Darryl shot Phoebe and continued with a wry smile, "I am not going to harm them, Inspector, but I am also very short of time. I don't want to threaten you but unless you get out now I will have to send you some place safe."
Phoebe who finally found her tongue turned to the police inspector, "Darryl, don't worry. Just go, I'll be in touch soon."
He had nothing left to do than to shake his head and leave. When the door behind him closed, Phoebe turned to Nicole and blurted out, "Are you here because you want to save Cole?"
Nicole seemed slightly taken aback, "How do you know?"
The middle Halliwell smiled with relief, "Because I came up with the same idea, we should ask Tempus to turn back the time and then save Cole from dying."
Nicole sighed tiredly and a sad smile touched her lips, "If only it was that simple," she whispered and then forced herself to return to her business tone. "Changing time won't help. Cole's soul..." she paused trying to find the way to explain everything to Phoebe and Leo without disclosing them the information about the Lugels. "Well, it's left this realm. And if we just change the time we will only create an alternative reality in which Cole would be dead anyway. So we need first to find his soul and bring it to this realm and only after that we can change time and try to prevent him from dying."
Phoebe's face fell, "But how?" she started, "How can we find Cole's soul. Where do demonic souls go after death or is Cole going to be considered as a human since Belthazor is dead?"
Nicole shook her head, "I can't tell you where it is because I don't know myself but there is a way to track him." She looked at two people standing in front of her, "I have a potion which can separate my soul from my body and then I can find Cole and hopefully convince him to come back. But I will need to secure help of one of the powerful..." she paused not knowing how to describe Lugels to Phoebe, "magical creatures. They are not exactly evil or good but they have their own interests at heart. And I don't have time for long negotiations so I am asking you to help me."
Her eyes focused on Phoebe, "I know that we are not exactly friends and you probably hate my guts but I believe that you love Cole enough to oversee your feelings for me and help me bring him back. Unfortunately what I want to attempt has never been tried and there are no guarantees but at least it gives us a chance."
"I will do whatever I can to help you," the young witch stated firmly.
"Thank you," for the first time Nicole's smile had actually some feelings in it, "But I will need not only your help but the help of your sisters. I will need you to turn into Goddesses again." She turned to Leo, "The creatures I am talking about are very powerful but none of them would be able to withstand the Charmed Goddesses."
The Elder's eyes became slightly wider and he was about to say something, when Phoebe interrupted him, "Eh, we might have a problem," she started carefully, "my sister had just had a baby, I don't think she'll be fit to become a Goddess."
Nicole turned to her, "Oh, we can fix that," she said calmly.
"How?" Leo frowned suspiciously, "I can't heal her, it's not a magical wound, she is just exhausted after child birth."
"Leo," Nicole rolled her eyes, "I am not going to harm Piper. All I am going to do is to give her own healing powers, which any human has, a little boost. It will help her recover not in a week or a month, but in a few minutes." She noticed the Elder still hesitating, "Leo," her voice sounded very clear and serious, "I swear to you on my life and on my chance to save Cole that I am not lying and that I won't hurt Piper."
XXXXXXXXX
"You want us to do what?" Paige looked at her sister in disbelief.
Phoebe sighed: it was not going to be easy. "I want you to become Goddesses with me so we can help Nicole to resurrect Cole."
The youngest Charmed One snorted indignantly, "You must be joking," she exclaimed loudly. "This bastard is finally gone and you want us to resurrect him? Are you out of your mind, Phoebe?"
"No, I am not," the middle Halliwell tried her best to stay calm, "Cole was murdered, he was an innocent in this situation and the least we can do is help to bring him back."
Paige rolled her eyes, "Phoebe, what are you talking about?! Cole an innocent? I know that you are head over hills in love with him but for God's sake don't come up with such nonsense. Cole is anything but an innocent. Didn't you hear Darryl? FBI is after him for multiple murders - that should tell you something."
"It was not FBI," Phoebe protested, "Nicole explained that her mother got together a group of witches and humans and started a personal vendetta against Cole."
"Vendetta for what?" Paige asked raising her eyebrows and when Phoebe did not answer continued, "Phoebe, you can't hide from the truth. Cole was and in my opinion still is a notorious demon. He killed so many people that he can't even remember. This people have the right for revenge. Think about it, if Shax after killing Prue had suddenly decided to become good, would you just let him go? No. And neither would I. So if you can avenge Prue's death why can't others seek revenge on Cole?"
"Because Cole is different," Phoebe yelled. "Jeez, Paige, have you ever thought what he went through. His father was killed in front of his eyes when Cole was six. Then he was taken to the Underworld and brought up to be a demonic assassin. He was not given a choice. The only way he could survive as a half bred was to be stronger than anybody else and be a loyal servant of the Source. He lived like this for over a hundred years. But still he managed to preserve his humanity even if it was deeply submerged. Why else do you think the Source and the Triad used his father's soul as an insurance against him? And when he was given a chance he managed to change his life, he left everything he'd ever known and started a new life knowing that just by doing that he was putting his life into a great danger. And in my opinion he deserves a second chance."
Paige rolled her eyes, "A second maybe, but he had much more than that. And it always ended up the same way, he killed an innocent. Plus he is evil now, he had returned to the Underworld? Did you forget how he sent fireballs at us?" She paused and continued calmer, "Look, I never insisted on us going after him, because first we are not powerful enough and second because I know you still love him. But now when he is gone, I'll be damned if I am going to help bringing this monster back into the world."
Phoebe stared at her sister angrily and turned to Piper, "And you are thinking the same?" she asked.
Piper gave her younger sister a sympathetic look, "No, I don't. Leo told me about the Source possessing Cole. And I am truly sorry that we did not know earlier. But as it is I don't think we are in the position to go and risk our lives. It's all nice and well for Nicole to suspect that we won't have to fight these magical creatures but what if we do? I have just had a baby and I don't want to go around risking my life. It's hard enough that Leo is an Elder, if something happens to us Wyatt would be completely alone in this world. And I don't want this to happen."
Phoebe's shoulder sagged and for a second his sisters thought that she was going to submit to their decision. But when she lifted her head they saw a sheer determination on her face. "Well, you know what? I am not taking "no" for an answer and this is why. For you, Paige, I just have to say one thing. Whether you like it or not, we had killed an innocent man, a family member, when he was possessed by the Source. And no matter how much you would like to pretend that we did not know, we are guilty of going along with our prejudice and not looking for the truth. When I was turning evil, you did not want to vanquish me, but risked your life trying to save me. But when you thought that Cole was the Source all you cared about was to prove that you were right and you did not even bother to try to get to the bottom of it. Because ever since you found out about Belthazor you hated Cole. It did not matter how many times he saved our asses, for you he was just an undeserving evil demon who should be vanquished." Under her sister's accusations Paige squirmed uncomfortably and Phoebe continued, "You don't like the truth but, trust me, the more you run from it the harder it will hit you. So accept the facts. We are guilty of murder, all three of us. And therefore we have no right to judge Cole. Otherwise we have to apply the same standards to ourselves and I don't know about you but I would like to be given a chance to correct my mistakes and to get on with my life." She glared at her younger sister and turned the oldest Halliwell, "And you Piper, if you had a chance to resurrect Prue, would you risk your life and ask Leo and Cole and everybody else around to do the same? Well, I am asking you to help me save Cole."
Both sisters were deeply moved by her outburst. They exchanged long looks and Paige shook her head. Part of her was convinced that helping to resurrect Cole was the biggest mistake ever. But on the other hand she could not say "no" to Phoebe. Paige remembered the moment when the middle Charmed One decided to become the Queen of the Underworld. During that horrible week Piper told her that she was not surprised that Phoebe had chosen her husband over them. Her love for Cole, she said, could overpower anything. Paige doubted it then and she seemed to be proven right when Phoebe helped them to vanquish Cole and especially when he returned from the Wasteland. But now looking at her sister, she knew that she was wrong and that worried Paige. What would Phoebe do if they were successful and Cole comes back to his wife? And what would happen if they failed?
It seemed that Piper had similar thoughts. She turned to the middle sister, "Phoebes, we understand how you feel. And we will try to help you, but first tell me, what are you going to do if we are successful? You know that Cole won't come back to you?"
Phoebe smiled sadly, "I know he won't. But it does not matter. As long as he is alive...Everything is fine."
"Then we are with you..." Piper smiled and gave Paige a stern look, "Right, Paige?"
The youngest Halliwell nodded, "Right," she agreed, pushing her doubts away.
XXXXXXXXX
"Why is she not waking up?" Celina paced around an empty room which for now became the meeting room for the Lugel's Council, "It's been more than an hour. She is a Lugel, she is invincible, for God's sakes. How can it be that she's is still unconscious?"
"Her body is taking its time," Kara tried to calm her down. And when Celina shot her a doubtful look sighed exasperatedly. "Look, Celina, I ran all the checks. She is absolutely fine and so are the babies. It's probably just a protective reaction. Nicole is pregnant and she went through a big trauma. It's might be best for her and the babies that she is still unconscious. At least she is calm now. And when she wakes up the reality will hit her hard and if I had to give just my professional opinion it'd be better if she just stayed like that at least until ...."
She stopped mid sentence when Celina seared her with an angry glare, "I don't care what your professional opinion is," she hissed. "And it would be definitely better for all of us if you kept your mouth shut."
Vladimir sighed, "She did not mean to upset you," he said gently, "I know you are worried and so am I. You are not the only one who cares about Nicole, but we should try to look at things realistically. For now Nicole is at peace and God knows how she will react when she wakes up and realizes it was not just a horrible nightmare."
Celina did not answer and just shot him a dark look.
Carlos who had been fuming ever since he got into this house finally could not contain his irritation any longer. "What interests me," he started in an annoyed voice, "is why on Earth are we meeting here? Why instead of bringing Nicole into our realm you took her to this God forsaken house."
Celina was in no mood to be lectured, "Because we did not have a choice."
"What do you mean?" Dorian asked in confusion.
The French Lugel rolled her eyes, "I mean that we could not bring Nicole to the Lugel's realm because Elizabeth did not let us."
Carlos just snorted, "And how on Earth did she do that?" he asked caustically, "I have not heard that our new Source was more powerful than two Lugels."
Celina grimaced as if she just ate a raw lemon, "Will you stop being such an obnoxious idiot, Carlos. Or do I have to remind you that she is the Source and we need her to finalize the peace deal. Or do you suggest that we kill her and start from scratch? Because I can tell you now that it was either that or listening to her."
"But we can't conduct our business like that," Radgiv objected, "We have a mission to fulfill and we can't be blackmailed by some demoness."
Celina was about to retort but Vladimir interrupted her, "We know that, but you also have to realize that Elizabeth Turner is not just a demoness. She is Nicole's mother-in-law and the grandmother of the babies. Nicole needs all the support she can get. And from what I know her and Elizabeth had pretty good relationships. So it's very likely she will turn to her not to us."
"Well we should remind her that she is a Lugel and the mother of the Heirs of Magic. She has responsibilities..."
It was Vladimir's turn to roll his eyes, "Oh, Carlos, get back to reality. Do you think Nicole will listen to us? In all honesty I have my doubts she would even want to speak to us after what happened."
"Why not?" Dorian raised his eyebrows surprised.
"Because, she will find out about the prophecies and I suspect blame us for not telling her earlier and manipulating hers and Cole's lives with a very tragic end."
"She does not really need to find out..." Radgiv remarked suggestively.
"But she will..." Celina took a deep breath, "Because Elizabeth Turner knows."
"How?" several voice exclaimed.
Celina shrugged, "Because I told her."
"What?" Dorian cried out.
"I told her," Celina repeated calmly. "She already knew quiet a lot," she continued raising her voice above the noise. "I just filled in the details."
"Why would you do this?" Carlos fumed, "You have breached your duty..."
"I have not breached anything..." Celina snapped, "And stop with all these accusations. Look at yourself, look at this Council. We are supposed to be these wise creatures that see the big picture and all we do lately is argue constantly instead of admitting that we are dealing here with a completely different situation than we are used to. The events are taking their own turn and there is very little we can do about it. And in future it's going to be even worse. We have to face the facts until it's too late. Nicole Turner is not a doll we can manipulate. She is a Lugel, equal to us in her rights and powers. And in the next eight months she will be the most powerful being in the Universe commanding the powers of her unborn children. She is also a woman, who suffered a major loss. And we have to respect it unless we want to lose her and the Heirs of Magic."
"Well said, Celina," the cold voice behind the Lugel made her jump. She swirled round and saw Nicole standing in the doorframe. "Seems that you finally are catching up." The young woman walked into the room but stood quite far from the rest of the group.
Vladimir was the first one to recover from shock, "How are you feeling?" he asked softly.
Nicole's eyes sparkled strangely, "How do you think?"
"We are just worried about you, Nicole," Dorian raised his voice.
"Are you?" she arched her eyebrow. "I thought somebody here had just said that she would have preferred if I stayed unconscious for the next eight months."
Kara's face flashed red and she muttered, "I did not mean that. I just said that your body was using its natural protective mechanisms and we should not be worried."
Nicole's lips twisted into a wry smile but she did not say anything. The room fell into an uneasy silence. Still standing at a distance from other Lugels Nicole observed the Council. During the last months she came to respect these people. There were her colleagues, her teammates. She did not like all of them equally but she was used to rely on them, work with them. They covered her back and were always there to help. Now she did not know how she felt about them. Part of her mind was receptive to her father's explanation that Lugels had different view on the world and different code-of-practice. She knew about that before and herself acted according to it. And probably Robert was right that if her and Cole were told the truth, their relationship would not be as happy as it was. But the other part of Nicole could not listen to reason. Just the thought that if the Lugels had told her and Cole about the prophecy he might have been still alive infuriated her and she wanted to destroy this people who so coldly manipulated her. The young woman took a deep breath. It was no time for emotions, she had to save Cole and it was the only thing that mattered. She looked around the Council, her eyes stopping on each face trying to determine whether it was a face of a friend or a foe. The Lugels looked at her wary and Nicole decided that it was time to play openly.
"I don't want to start a discussion now about what happened," she started calmly. "It's enough for you to understand that I know the truth about the Prophecies and I see your point of view. So you don't have to waste yours and my time by trying to convince me that the Council did what it had to do. At the same time I want you to understand that none of these reasons, goals or whatever you want to name them is more important for me than Cole's life. Yes, I am a Lugel and one of the Chosen Two and, yes, I am a mother of the Heirs of Magic. But firstly, above all of it I am a wife and I love my husband with every cell of my body. And I will do everything I can to bring him back."
She raised her head and looked around the Council as if daring them to object. Eleven Lugels exchanged wary glances and Dorian replied for everybody. "We understand your grief, Nicole, and believe me we would like to help you. But I don't want to keep up false hopes. You can't bring Cole back. His soul has already started its transformation and you can't turn it back."
She looked at him with penetrating eyes. That was the moment when she would find out if her father was right about the Lugels. "You're wrong," she said calmly. "It takes time for the soul to complete the transformation and until it reaches the Upper dimension there is a chance to bring him back."
"But you don't know where his soul is at the moment," Radgiv exclaimed. "And there is no way to find it. No creature can do this."
"But the soul can," Nicole objected.
"But we don't have such soul, do we?" Carlos started, but Dorian interrupted him.
"Do you suggest that we use your soul to follow him?" he asked with a shocked look.
"Exactly," Nicole nodded, "I have a potion which will separate my spirit from my body. This way I can trace Cole and hopefully bring him back. Then all we would need is to turn back time and reunite Cole's soul and his body."
"But this is incredibly dangerous," Kara cried out. "If you fail your body will fall into the perpetual coma."
Nicole shot her a dark look, "Well, isn't it what you wanted anyway?"
Kara's face turned red and she hissed trying to suppress her anger, "No, I did not. I was worried about you. We all are, and whether you believe us or not we are very sorry for what happened. Cole was one of us, he was a Lugel and you are not the only one grieving."
Nicole's face hardened and the anger which she tried to hide so hard spilled out, "How dare you," she cried her voice trembling, "how dare you telling me that Cole was one of you when you lied to both of us all this time, when you manipulated us?!"
"Nicole," Vladimir interrupted her, "It was not their fault. It was me and Celina that insisted on not telling you about the prophecies. We wanted you to have a normal life."
"You call this a normal life?" she shouted. "How dare you..."
A pair of sad but calm eyes looked at her, "I am really sorry Nicole. But what life would have it been if we had told you?"
Nicole's shoulder sagged, "I understand why you did it..." she whispered. "Or at least I am trying not to think that Cole might have been alive now if you had told us." She shook her head and added tiredly, "I don't want to argue with you. I don't have time for that. I need to save Cole, and believe me nothing you say can change my mind. I will take the risk."
Celina shook her head, "I know you are hurting, Nicole. Believe me, I do, but you have to think about your children. If something goes wrong and you know yourself that a lot can go wrong, what will happen to them?"
Nicole winced as if from strong pain, "Nothing will happen to them," she said quietly, "They will be born and taken care of."
"But they won't see either their mother or father." Celina said softly.
Nicole raised her head and everybody saw tears in her eyes, "I know that," she said in a deadly calm voice, "but if I am successful they will grow up with both their parents." She took a deep breath, "I will not give up on Cole. He was sacrificed before for the sake of other people. I am not doing this to him again." Sad smile touched her lips, "Besides, I don't want to turn into my mother hating the world and magic because it took her husband away from her."
Silence fell in the room, which was interrupted by Carlos. He stepped in front of Dorian and stared in his face. "How can you stand here and be quiet? The Council can't allow her to risk like that. If he comes back he will be a mere human. Do we want a defenseless mortal around who knows everything about Lugels, who knows how we look and what we do?"
Dorian shot Carlos a warning look, "It's not the most important aspect of this," he said and turned to Nicole, "We can't risk you and your children. Plus what you are attempting is highly against our rules, you are messing with the destiny of the Universe by trying to change the past. The Council will never agree on that."
"Are you sure?" Nicole's eyes sparkled dangerously. She looked around the Council. Everybody stayed quiet backing up their Secretary's decision. Nicole smiled wryly, "I see my father was right," she said quietly, "OK, then I will do it without your permission."
"You won't be able to," Radgiv remarked, "you will need a Lugel to capture yours and Cole's souls."
"And you will help me," Nicole stated calmly.
"Oh, no, girl," Carlos objected, "We are not going to help you, even more we are going to seal you in the Lugels' realm until you come to your senses."
Nicole looked at him coldly, "Are you threatening me?" she asked with a dangerous note in her voice.
"No, but I am just reminding you that no matter how powerful you are, you can't use magic against us because you will lose your powers forever."
Nicole smiled chillingly, "Oh, I remember that very well. But you see, I am not going to use my powers against you. I am just going to tell somebody that you are preventing me from saving Cole." She waived her hand and the wall of the room became suddenly transparent giving the Lugels a view of the living room.
"What the hell?" Carlos could not hide his surprise.
"Oh, these are the Charmed Ones Goddesses." Nicole explained calmly. "See, I was warned that you would not be keen on helping me so I used some precautions. I am not the only one who had just lost somebody very dear to her heart. And if I can't use my powers against you, Phoebe Halliwell and her sisters don't have such restrictions. Lugels lost half the Council fighting the Titans, whom the Charmed Goddesses vanquished just a day ago. So I don't think any of us cherish the opportunity to see what the sisters can do to this Council." She seared the other Lugels with a cold glare, "Phoebe and her sisters are currently waiting for me to come out and say that the Lugels Council is going to do everything they can to save Cole. And if I don't do this within one hour they are going to come into this room themselves. The choice is yours."
"You are blackmailing us?" Dorian cried out.
"No, I am just explaining the situation."
The tensed silence filled the room. Nicole observed the Council praying that she would not have to use the Charmed Ones. Her eyes met with Celina's and she remembered her father's words that Celina would be her best bet. And now she could see the inner struggle in the dark eyes of the French woman. Nicole feverishly thought about the way she could remind Celina about the promise her father mentioned without attracting the attention of the rest of the Council. She cleared her throat, "I am asking the Council for understanding," she started. "Everybody here knows what a promise means, especially a promise given to somebody you love and care for," her eyes fixed on Celina and she noticed the older woman's lips tremble. "Well, I made such promise to Cole," Nicole continued, "I swore to stand by his side in life and death and I will not go back on this. No matter how much I respect the Lugel's Council and our mission I am bound by my word, by my blood to eternal loyalty to my husband. And I believe that the Lugel Council is not going to demand me breaking my oath."
"What about your oath as a Lugel?" Carlos grumbled. "You are a Lugel, you have great powers and with these powers comes great responsibility..." He was ready to continue his lecture but Celina interrupted him.
"Enough of this, Carlos," she said in an emotional voice. "The Chosen Two have been 100 committed to our goal, working very hard to bring about the peace deal. Now it's our turn to show them our loyalty. We need to remember that Lugels are not just magical beings with great powers. We are a team and we should behave like a team. And if we have a chance to save Cole we ought to give it a go."
"Celina," Dorian exclaimed, "What are you talking about?"
"I am saying that I am going to help Nicole," Celina lifted her head defiantly. "I promised William that I will help and protect Nicole and I will keep this promise."
"But what she wants to do is suicide!" Radgiv protested. "And helping her means putting her life in grave danger."
"And not helping her means slowly killing her." Celina stated suddenly very calm. "And I know how painful it can be..." She turned to Nicole, "I will do everything I can to help you..." She smiled at the young woman. Tears stood in Nicole's eyes as she rushed towards Celina and for the first time gave her a hug.
Dorian wanted to interrupt this scene but Vladimir put his hand on his shoulder, "Let it go, Dorian," he said calmly, "There is nothing you can do here and maybe it was simply meant to be, whatever the outcome."