Chapter 3: Exceeding Fashion

"Pick him up some girls, Xedim," the Source told one of his guards, "then shimmer them down. Any girls, it doesn't matter who."

"No. I only like overweight girls," Phoebe's kidnapper intercepted.

"Don't kill them," the Source ignored the interruption, "he wants to do some experiments with them," he grinned in the direction of his new humble servant serial killer," although some of the fun is lost, if you can't catch them yourself, but whatever," he waved Ivan to go. He bowed his head looking at Phoebe slightly, then gentlemanly offered his hand to help her stand up.

Phoebe took it, there was no harm in it, at least she had a chance for a premonition, "how are you? Still hurts where my boyfriend hit you?"

"Balthazor, hm?" The Source snorted, "your precious boyfriend can't hurt me. At least not anymore."

"And I'm believing you right now because you are the most honest person in the world?"

The Source chortled, "that's what I like in a girl, keep to her beliefs till the end? You know I didn't send my contract killers after you for a while because I was fascinated by the three of you? But that's not why I didn't kill you now. I want you to perform a little job for me. Since Balthazor was so humanitarian and rescued your sister," he mocked sardonically, "I lost quite a lot of my powers. I need to be strong again. I'm taking back what's mine. You were supposed to stay down here to save your sister. Never mind, now the power of three will perform a black ceremony for me to congregate evil forces from ether."

"You clearly have something wrong with your head. Perhaps because all it consists of is a black hole in reality."

"I can assume any form. The handsome mug of your dying Belthazor's for example. Oh, no need to doubt me. That's right. He's dying from a slow acting poison I made sure he gets for his services for me."

"We will never perform any black magic."

"We'll see. Now go, and watch your lover die and agonising death. It's only me and me alone that had the antidote, " he lifted a hand and Phoebe felt the sickening sensation of a shimmer.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Leo orbed Piper and Paige back to the manor, making a tick on a little piece of paper, "good we actually managed to place somebody back behind bars for a change. Eleven to go."

"More scrying," Piper urged her sister, when Phoebe shimmered in by herself in front of them, "what?" Piper put her hands on her hips, putting emphasis on the last letter.

"Down on a chit chat with the Source," Phoebe waved them off, "nothing more."

"He didn't kill you?" Paige opened her eyes wide.

"Khmm," Phoebe reacted, "do I look dead to you?"

"What is it this time?" Piper wondered, all of them having had a turn at being the focal point of the attention of the demon that held the title of being the origin of all things evil. He wants us to assist him with reinstating his powers, using energy from our side. He said he poisoned Cole and that we can't heal him. We need to find Cole. That might've been wrong with him all along."

"No need to find him. He's upstairs…" Piper growled as she flung her hands in a direction of a demon appearing in front of her, but she missed and the demon smoked out, leaving a very bomb looking object behind.

"Bomb to Death Valley!" Paige shouted before it exploded.

"Well done! Great progress you made with your skills," Leo praised her.

"This is getting really annoying," Piper established, "we need to get back to work here. Phoebe you go see Cole, he said he just wanted to catch up on some sleep. This was of course before the latest edition of hell broke loose, but he was looking kinda spaced out I think…Paige, orb the map down!"

Phoebe could still hear her sisters, but her mind was tortured by a terrible image in her mind, that she will stumble over Cole already dead on the floor in her room. She knew it could not have been a premonition, just her a picture from her vivid imagination, mostly because if Cole would've died, he would've disintegrated in smoke, but she took the last steps running nevertheless…

Tbc