** Change of Heart **, chapter 11: Acquaintances
by Lilian
lilian413@yahoo.com
AN: *rising head from under the rock I've been living in for the past two weeks*. Hi. I hope you're not mad at me for keeping you in suspense for so long. My trip got pushed back due to bad weather, and I've been lurking in the shadows since then.
But I did manage to write this--- I hope you like it!.
R&R, please?.
Oh, for anyone interested, my bday is Feb 23rd--- I accept credit card numbers and happy bday cards... :0.
********************************
{{January, 7, 2003}}
She closed her eyes, and inhaled the clean, crisp air of San
Francisco.
For the first time in over a year, she was back. And she realized her
memories were dim, compared to what the sun really felt like and how loud the noise really was.
"Move it, Phax. This ain't no stroll through the park".
Jhiera practically barked at her. Phax opened her eyes, and simply
nodded. She knew it was wrong, allowing her mind to get distracted like
that. Demons did not stay in one place for extended periods of time.
They were always on the move.
Besides, so was their victim.
They were at the intersection of Van Ness and McAllister, people
brushing past them, unknowing and oblivious to their true nature. So consumed
in their petty little lives, they failed to notice the strange darkness
that seemed to cling to the two women, even in the sunny morning of
early January.
The festivities were just gone, and New Year's exhilaration had already
died, left behind as people resumed their lives, returning to their
normal, everyday routine.
But they were here on an assignment.
Phax's first.
And as so, Jhiera had come with her, to make sure she didn't 'chicken
out', in her own words.
She need not fear. Phax was more than ready to do what had to be done,
in order to win the Source's favor, and be finally able to wander alone
through the Surface, looking for those she wished to see destroyed.
Jhiera's not so gentle tug on her arm made her turn around, and she
followed her partner's violet eyes.
There.
Gerald Summers. Bank accountant. Nothing much, as a human being. In
truth, Phax did not even know why they had been sent after him, but she
had learned not to question the orders she was given. She
shrugged Jhiera's arm off her own, and started after the man.
He was short, almost her own size. The first signs of balding
graced the back of his head, and the thick glasses he wore
just added to the picture perfect accountant of any bank in any country in
the world.
There was a suitcase in his right hand, and his left kept traveling
from his pocket, to his hair, and back to his pocket. He was clearly
nervous, as he strode through the streets, headed towards work probably.
He had just left the City hall, Phax noticed absentmindedly.
She knew that they had to wait for the proper moment to strike. Attacks
in public were punished with death--- she knew the consequences of
exposure.
Jhiera walked by her, silent and focused.
She really wanted to see how Phax would react to her first kill. Sure,
she had been training for months now, almost a whole year--- but still.
She was human, as much as she tried to deny it.
Jhiera remembered her first kill. The exhilaration of the kill, the
adrenaline running through her, the thrill of the hunt... it still sent
shivers down her spine whenever she remembered it.
So, she was really curious about Phax.
Meanwhile, Phax was trying to keep her eyes on the little man. He moved
fast for such a pitiful human, and in the morning crowd, rushing to
their jobs and workstations, it was easy to miss him.
She knew what she had to do.
Knew that in the end, she would have to kill him.
And strangely, a ghost of remorse had been making its way into her
heart. She had tried to squash it, tried so hard to push it in the back of
her mind--- but in here, on the Surface, surrounded by people,
people she had once sworn to protect...
The scent of humanity was intoxicating. The sheer power that ran
through them, even if they were completely unaware of it, was like a
drug, and it was making her dizzy.
After an entire year of being the only human in the Underworld, to be
suddenly surrounded by her own kind, was a shock to her system.
Her breath was coming in short gasps that she tried to keep concealed
behind the loud hum of the city. Jhiera wasn't listening to her anyway.
She knew this was a trial. Knew this was a test of her loyalty to the
Source. This is what she had been preparing for the past year--- this
was what she had worked so hard for... and still, why was it so hard?.
Maybe this man had a family, a home to return to. And she was about to
terminate that with a swift blast, was going to kill him, incinerate
him...
"There".
Jhiera's whisper awoke her. And she saw as Gerald Summers took a
shortcut through a darkened alley, perhaps hoping to save some time.
Idiot.
A feral mile curled Jhiera's lips, and she turned to her companion, and
saw a flash of uncertainty in her dark eyes.
"Having second thoughts, Witch?".
The nickname was offensive to Phax. And it infuriated her to no end.
She wasn't a witch anymore--- hadn't been since the second the Source had
marked her as his. The triangle on her forearm was an everyday
reminder of what she had accepted, of the darkness she had embraced.
And now was the time to prove it.
"No. Let's do it".
She strode forward, leaving Jhiera behind on purpose.
She went in for the kill.
*******************************
Phoebe had always been their connection to the innocents. Phoebe was
the Seer. She had the premonitions, they went to the place she had seen,
and saved the day.
But ever since she had died, they had no way of knowing when evil was
about to strike.
Cole could only sense evil in close vicinity, and Leo was no longer
allowed in Heaven.
Hence, they had relied on scrying. And the tabloids.
Both excellent ways of knowing when the supernatural was at work. Even
if the tabloids tended to be a little exaggerated, there was sometimes
truth behind their stories.
Sometimes.
But today, Piper had decided she had had it with 'my alien baby', and
'the Pope's a father!' news. So, she sat in front of the San Francisco
map, the pendant dangling from her fingers, moving in slow, lazy
circles.
She wasn't really expecting to find anything--- they rarely did these
days.
But still, something was telling her today might be different.
Just in cue with her thoughts, the pendant dove down, and glued itself
to a spot in the map. She leaned in, and read the small letters.
Van Ness and McAllister.
She rose, letting the pendant fall from her fingers, and while picking
up her jacket, she called out to the other occupants of the house.
"Paige, Cole!. We've got work to do!".
Leo came down the stairs, with Prue in his arms.
"Be careful".
Piper smiled at her husband, and kissed his lips, reassuring him.
"We will".
Paige and Cole came down the stairs, ready to vanquish the demon of the
day. And off they went, to the intersection of Van Ness and
McAllister... never knowing what lay in store for them.
**************************
"Your turn, honey".
Jhiera's voice was mocking, knowing Phax was having second thoughts
about killing their victim. She could see in her eyes, in the way she
toyed with her hair, in the way she had remained behind while she threw the
energy ball that had knocked the man unconscious.
"I know".
Phax looked at the man laying at her feet, and something inside of her
screamed. She didn't want to do this--- she was supposed to protect
innocents, not kill them!.
She shook her head, and the protest died inside of her.
She wasn't that woman anymore.
She held no responsibility whatsoever over the pitiful man, or over
anyone else, but herself. But still, she couldn't summon the fireball.
She had been warned it would be harder to call for her power on
the Surface, where Good dwells... but the difficulties she was
experiencing were not related to the possible overpowering of Good over Evil.
Or in some way, it did.
She had never killed a human before.
Scratch that. She had *murdered* her own daughter... but that had been
out of necessity. This was for pleasure. She knew the man held nothing
of interest for them. He wasn't destined for the greater Good, did not
hold any earthly possessions they could covet.
She knew, in every fiber of her being, that the only purpose of this
man's death was to prove her loyalty and her strength.
And that thought made it hard to carry out the orders she had been
given.
"Phax, move it".
Jhiera was getting restless. Demons never stayed in the mortal's world
for long--- witches could always scry for them, and whitelighters could
always feel them. Besides, she hated being up here just to
baby-sit the new demon-in-training.
Specially when said demon-in-training refused to just kill the stupid
human!.
"Cut it out, would you?. I'm trying to savor the kill here".
Phax's voice was steady and firm, and she fooled Jhiera. Because it was
not the thrill of the first kill that was running through her veins...
it was something almost akin to disgust.
At herself.
Because everything she had done for the past year, was a prelude to
this.
Was meant for this particular moment, when she would kill an innocent
man, probably chosen randomly, to make her *kill*.
And she couldn't do it.
Her mind went back to the days in which she had sworn to protect people
like this. And suddenly she found herself seething with anger.
{Stop it already!. It's because of them you ended up in here in the
first place. Get it over and done with, all right?}.
She gritted her teeth, and rubbed her temples, fighting off the last
remnants of humanity, that grew dimmer with each passing day.
And with each breath, she moved closer to what she was supposed to
become.
When she opened her eyes, ready to strike, she saw out of the corner of
her eye as Jhiera stretched out her hand, muttering something about
newbies, and gathering an energy ball in it. It only took her a second to grab her arm in mid motion, and send the energy ball flying into the farthest wall.
"He's mine".
Jhiera's flashing purple eyes locked in on her, and Phax fought back
the urge to cringe under her probing gaze.
"Really?. Why haven't you killed him then?".
"You never shut up, do you?".
They faced off each other, Jhiera standing taller than Phax, and still,
the smaller woman holding her ground.
She had gotten pretty powerful in the last few months... she knew that
soon she would be able to fight Jhiera on fairer grounds. But not
yet. The she-demon could still knock her down with one hand, and she did
not want to return bleeding after her first assignment.
"Fine".
She crushed the light in her heart, that cried out in despair as she
called forth a fireball. She squashed her conscience, or what little was
left of it, and readied herself to throw the attack.
In the soft morning sun, the fireball shone with an eerie light of its
own, somehow so out of place in the world of mortals... She looked deep
into the flame, trying to destroy the last of her qualms with the fire
that licked her fingertips.
And it seemed to work, because she suddenly found herself not caring
about what would happen. She needed to do this, and she would.
Taking a deep breath, she threw the fireball.
And she watched with horror as the flames enveloped the limp body of
the man, and began consuming his flesh. She thanked whoever was watching
from above that he was unconscious... she wasn't sure she could've
handled his screaming.
The smell of burnt human flesh filled the alley, and invaded her
nostrils, forcing her to smell what she had done. She could close her eyes,
and block the image of the blazes away... but she could not shut down
her nose, and could not stop her ears from listening to the cricks and
cracks of bones breaking and melting down.
She looked at Jhiera, standing by her, her eyes fixed on the orange
flames, reflecting off her eyes and making them shine. She seemed
enthralled, so focused she was on them.
She turned to look at Phax, and bared her fangs at her.
"Beautiful".
Her whisper was seductive, and most obviously displaying the pleasure
she felt. The kill was addictive... and even if Phax had now hesitated,
she would soon feel the bliss of the godlike power she carried, and use
it without hesitation or scruples.
"Let's go".
Jhiera shimmered away, her stance blurry and shaky, before disappearing
completely.
But Phax did not follow her.
She stood there, her hair flowing in the morning breeze, her black eyes
focused on the scorch mark at her feet.
She had killed a man.
She had killed him. In cold blood. Shouldn't she be feeling something?.
Regret?. Sadness?. Nausea?. But she felt nothing.
Nothing.
She resented the lack of feeling, knowing it was the ultimate
indication that she was as dead as the demons she had once fought. She had lost
her ability to feel... and she was grateful. After this, there was
nothing she could not do.
A wicked smile danced across her tight lips, a smile of yielding.
She rose her eyes up to the sky, and through buildings and
clotheslines, sought the sky she hadn't seen in over a year. And found it darker,
different--- her black eyes were not made to experience the joy of the
skies, of a blue so deep that rivaled with that of the ocean.
And she smirked again.
Fine. The world turned its back on her, she would turn her back on the
world.
As she prepared to shimmer, a cloud waltzed over the sun, covering the
alley in shadows. The building loomed over her, their big bodies
keeping what little light was left outside. She did not care. She closed her
eyes, calling forth the teleportation magic.
And a voice echoed in the alley, breaking her concentration.
"Oh my God!".
That was the last thing she heard, before the whole alley was frozen.
**************************
Piper had meant to blow the demon up. She really had. She had spotted a
dark figure standing in the end of the alley, over black ashes, which
most certainly indicated a recent burning, that she was betting
was not a hobo's attempt at warming up.
She had thrown her arms up, fully intending in blowing the bastard up.
Even after a year, she sometimes screwed up.
She ran all the way to the end of the alley, Paige and Cole hot on her
heels.
Well, *Paige*, hot on her heels. Cole remained behind, something in the
air striking him as odd. It was--- electrified. Something he hadn't
felt in a long time. Not since Phoebe---
His trained eyes scanned the alley for further threats. There were
none. The demon was alone and seemingly just standing there when Piper had
frozen it. That in itself was strange, since demons did not loose
their time in contemplation as the world passed them
by.
The other thing that had him on his toes, was the way he was drawn to
the dark figure. Something about it called him, demanded he move
forward, and look at it deeply.
"That's it!. You're dust, buster!".
Piper raised her arm, ready to blast the demon into oblivion, when the
clouds stopped covering the sun. And the light came back, illuminating
the dark alley with the hot morning sun, and they were able
to see the figure in front of them.
"Impossible...".
Paige's silent whisper was the only thing that broke the heavy silence
that settled on the air. In fact, it seemed the whole world had been
frozen, as no sounds broke the eerie quiet.
Piper couldn't believe her eyes. She did not want to believe her eyes.
And yet, there she was, standing in front of her, *frozen*... her baby
sister. The sister she had deemed lost.
{Phoebe...}
Tears clouded her vision, and she gasped for air, as any and all doubts
she could have had about Prue's parentage were destroyed, because of
the living, breathing proof that greeted her eyes.
She knew it was Phoebe. Their sister bond was crying out, roaring in
her ears, awakening from a year old slumber.
Cole had stopped dead in his tracks when he saw her. His heart had
stopped beating, and it was suddenly hard to focus.
It was impossible... he had felt their link break, had felt her soul
dying--- and yet here she was, in front of him.
"Phoebe...".
He moved in, fully intending on gathering her in his arms, to hug the
life out of her, and to never, ever let go--- when his eyes saw
something that was not supposed to be there.
She was frozen.
Piper had frozen Phoebe.
And the realization hit him just in time, because Phoebe's form
blurred, as she fought the temporal stasis. And she broke it.
*******************************
Phax knew something was wrong when something in the back of her mind
told her she had just missed a few heartbeats.
Well, that, and the fact that suddenly, there were people in front of
her.
People that had not been there before, when she had began her shimmer.
And when she took a good look at who was standing in front of her, what
was left of her heart lurched in her chest, and caught her completely
by surprise.
Because there--- right there, in front of her, stood the one she had
grown to hate in the past year.
{Cole...}
The thought sprung forth with such force, it surprised her. Yet, she still had the presence of mind to keep quiet, and biting back her tongue, she pushed it back. She called for his other name, the one she had fought to acknowledge him by.
Belthazor.
She pushed back the dizziness that threatened to grab hold of her, and
forced herself to smile. And managed to ace it, as
the grin that curled her lips, was one of unspeakable evil.
"Hello, family".
And she even surprised herself, with the calm and steadiness of her
voice. Her mind was a turmoil of emotions, emotions she had thought had
died along with Prue... but here they were, back with a vengeance.
Had she still possessed the ability to cry, hot, wet tears would be
gathering in her eyes, and threatening to spill down her cheeks.
It was as if someone has stuck a vacuum inside of her, and turned it on
without warning. And it was destroying every wall she had built around
herself, every lie she had forced herself to believe.
Her eyes were fixed on the unmoving form of the half-demon, who just looked
back at her, his eyes unbelieving...
From across the alley, their gazes locked, and sparks seemed to fly, as
the dormant passion awoke. Because even if she hated him, even if she
deemed him responsible for the death of the most precious thing she had
ever held in her arms, it seemed she still lusted for him.
And it seemed so did he.
Her keen eyesight allowed her to see as his breathing increased, and
his heartbeat accelerated. His hands tightened into fists, and she could
tell he was having trouble keeping himself in place.
"What, no hug, *lover*?".
Cole took a step back at the hate that practically dripped off her
voice. And the spell she held over him began to break, as he took in the
changes she had experienced.
But what struck him the most, what hurt down to the bottom of his
heart, were her eyes. They had lost their sienna glow, and now looked back
at him through depths of darkness. Black... they were black. And he knew
humans did not change eye color.
He drank in her sight, her beloved form, her luscious curves, not one
ounce out of place, not one trace that she had bore a child. She was
thinner than he remembered her to be--- but she was still Phoebe!.
Her hair was tied back in a ponytail, and stray strands of hair flew
back and forth, framing her face, forcing him to look deep into her eyes.
And in them, there was not a trace of the woman he had known, of the
woman he had fallen in love with.
And still, his body reacted to her, awakening from the slumber it had
been in ever since their link had been broken.
He consciously told his lungs to keep on breathing, and took a hesitant
step forward.
"Phoebe?".
Phoebe brushed her hair aside, tucking it firmly behind her ear. Her
moves were forced and harsh, and Cole realized she was battling her inner
demons, just as he was doing right now.
"Now that's better, lover. Although I was expecting a warmer welcome".
Piper took that moment to advance forward, and stretch out an uncertain
hand to her long lost sister.
"You're alive...".
Phoebe's eyes focused on her soft fingers, and watched in silence as
they drew closer to her, intending to touch her---
In the last second, she shimmered out of the way.
And grinned in devilish pleasure at their astonished gasps.
She reappeared a few feet away, her stance a bit more confident, her
body language bolder.
"Not quite, *sis*".
It was then that Paige spoke, her voice loud and clear in the silence.
"Piper, Cole, back away. Now".
The two turned to her, their eyes wide and unbelieving.
"What?".
Piper's reply was cut short when Phoebe snorted, as she absently looked
at her long fingernails.
"The kid is right, witch. Step away before you get burnt".
She refused to look at them, could not bear to look at them--- was it
humanly possible to be feeling like this?. Relieved, angered, nauseated,
and overjoyed at the same time?.
It was all so confusing--- she took a deep breath, as she tried to keep
her emotions in check.
{Come. Now}
The order echoed inside her head, and she trembled unconsciously, still
uncomfortable with the fact there was a disembodied voice speaking
directly into her brain.
Fine. She would go back. She ignored the soft whispers in the back of her head
that mocked her, telling her that she was relieved she was excused
of this--- meeting.
The Source was calling, and what the Source wanted, the Source got. But
she would rather deal with him, than with the
awestruck people that were staring at her right now.
She looked up, and locked gazes with Belthazor.
"We will continue this later, lover".
And she shimmered away, but not before his voice drifted over to her,
his words ringing like the proverbial Horn of Justice in her ears.
"Like hell we will-- we're finishing this now!".
And even if her heart was frozen inside her chest, their link had awakened, and Phax could feel as he shimmered behind her, following her into the recesess of the Underworld.
**************************
Tbc...
by Lilian
lilian413@yahoo.com
AN: *rising head from under the rock I've been living in for the past two weeks*. Hi. I hope you're not mad at me for keeping you in suspense for so long. My trip got pushed back due to bad weather, and I've been lurking in the shadows since then.
But I did manage to write this--- I hope you like it!.
R&R, please?.
Oh, for anyone interested, my bday is Feb 23rd--- I accept credit card numbers and happy bday cards... :0.
********************************
{{January, 7, 2003}}
She closed her eyes, and inhaled the clean, crisp air of San
Francisco.
For the first time in over a year, she was back. And she realized her
memories were dim, compared to what the sun really felt like and how loud the noise really was.
"Move it, Phax. This ain't no stroll through the park".
Jhiera practically barked at her. Phax opened her eyes, and simply
nodded. She knew it was wrong, allowing her mind to get distracted like
that. Demons did not stay in one place for extended periods of time.
They were always on the move.
Besides, so was their victim.
They were at the intersection of Van Ness and McAllister, people
brushing past them, unknowing and oblivious to their true nature. So consumed
in their petty little lives, they failed to notice the strange darkness
that seemed to cling to the two women, even in the sunny morning of
early January.
The festivities were just gone, and New Year's exhilaration had already
died, left behind as people resumed their lives, returning to their
normal, everyday routine.
But they were here on an assignment.
Phax's first.
And as so, Jhiera had come with her, to make sure she didn't 'chicken
out', in her own words.
She need not fear. Phax was more than ready to do what had to be done,
in order to win the Source's favor, and be finally able to wander alone
through the Surface, looking for those she wished to see destroyed.
Jhiera's not so gentle tug on her arm made her turn around, and she
followed her partner's violet eyes.
There.
Gerald Summers. Bank accountant. Nothing much, as a human being. In
truth, Phax did not even know why they had been sent after him, but she
had learned not to question the orders she was given. She
shrugged Jhiera's arm off her own, and started after the man.
He was short, almost her own size. The first signs of balding
graced the back of his head, and the thick glasses he wore
just added to the picture perfect accountant of any bank in any country in
the world.
There was a suitcase in his right hand, and his left kept traveling
from his pocket, to his hair, and back to his pocket. He was clearly
nervous, as he strode through the streets, headed towards work probably.
He had just left the City hall, Phax noticed absentmindedly.
She knew that they had to wait for the proper moment to strike. Attacks
in public were punished with death--- she knew the consequences of
exposure.
Jhiera walked by her, silent and focused.
She really wanted to see how Phax would react to her first kill. Sure,
she had been training for months now, almost a whole year--- but still.
She was human, as much as she tried to deny it.
Jhiera remembered her first kill. The exhilaration of the kill, the
adrenaline running through her, the thrill of the hunt... it still sent
shivers down her spine whenever she remembered it.
So, she was really curious about Phax.
Meanwhile, Phax was trying to keep her eyes on the little man. He moved
fast for such a pitiful human, and in the morning crowd, rushing to
their jobs and workstations, it was easy to miss him.
She knew what she had to do.
Knew that in the end, she would have to kill him.
And strangely, a ghost of remorse had been making its way into her
heart. She had tried to squash it, tried so hard to push it in the back of
her mind--- but in here, on the Surface, surrounded by people,
people she had once sworn to protect...
The scent of humanity was intoxicating. The sheer power that ran
through them, even if they were completely unaware of it, was like a
drug, and it was making her dizzy.
After an entire year of being the only human in the Underworld, to be
suddenly surrounded by her own kind, was a shock to her system.
Her breath was coming in short gasps that she tried to keep concealed
behind the loud hum of the city. Jhiera wasn't listening to her anyway.
She knew this was a trial. Knew this was a test of her loyalty to the
Source. This is what she had been preparing for the past year--- this
was what she had worked so hard for... and still, why was it so hard?.
Maybe this man had a family, a home to return to. And she was about to
terminate that with a swift blast, was going to kill him, incinerate
him...
"There".
Jhiera's whisper awoke her. And she saw as Gerald Summers took a
shortcut through a darkened alley, perhaps hoping to save some time.
Idiot.
A feral mile curled Jhiera's lips, and she turned to her companion, and
saw a flash of uncertainty in her dark eyes.
"Having second thoughts, Witch?".
The nickname was offensive to Phax. And it infuriated her to no end.
She wasn't a witch anymore--- hadn't been since the second the Source had
marked her as his. The triangle on her forearm was an everyday
reminder of what she had accepted, of the darkness she had embraced.
And now was the time to prove it.
"No. Let's do it".
She strode forward, leaving Jhiera behind on purpose.
She went in for the kill.
*******************************
Phoebe had always been their connection to the innocents. Phoebe was
the Seer. She had the premonitions, they went to the place she had seen,
and saved the day.
But ever since she had died, they had no way of knowing when evil was
about to strike.
Cole could only sense evil in close vicinity, and Leo was no longer
allowed in Heaven.
Hence, they had relied on scrying. And the tabloids.
Both excellent ways of knowing when the supernatural was at work. Even
if the tabloids tended to be a little exaggerated, there was sometimes
truth behind their stories.
Sometimes.
But today, Piper had decided she had had it with 'my alien baby', and
'the Pope's a father!' news. So, she sat in front of the San Francisco
map, the pendant dangling from her fingers, moving in slow, lazy
circles.
She wasn't really expecting to find anything--- they rarely did these
days.
But still, something was telling her today might be different.
Just in cue with her thoughts, the pendant dove down, and glued itself
to a spot in the map. She leaned in, and read the small letters.
Van Ness and McAllister.
She rose, letting the pendant fall from her fingers, and while picking
up her jacket, she called out to the other occupants of the house.
"Paige, Cole!. We've got work to do!".
Leo came down the stairs, with Prue in his arms.
"Be careful".
Piper smiled at her husband, and kissed his lips, reassuring him.
"We will".
Paige and Cole came down the stairs, ready to vanquish the demon of the
day. And off they went, to the intersection of Van Ness and
McAllister... never knowing what lay in store for them.
**************************
"Your turn, honey".
Jhiera's voice was mocking, knowing Phax was having second thoughts
about killing their victim. She could see in her eyes, in the way she
toyed with her hair, in the way she had remained behind while she threw the
energy ball that had knocked the man unconscious.
"I know".
Phax looked at the man laying at her feet, and something inside of her
screamed. She didn't want to do this--- she was supposed to protect
innocents, not kill them!.
She shook her head, and the protest died inside of her.
She wasn't that woman anymore.
She held no responsibility whatsoever over the pitiful man, or over
anyone else, but herself. But still, she couldn't summon the fireball.
She had been warned it would be harder to call for her power on
the Surface, where Good dwells... but the difficulties she was
experiencing were not related to the possible overpowering of Good over Evil.
Or in some way, it did.
She had never killed a human before.
Scratch that. She had *murdered* her own daughter... but that had been
out of necessity. This was for pleasure. She knew the man held nothing
of interest for them. He wasn't destined for the greater Good, did not
hold any earthly possessions they could covet.
She knew, in every fiber of her being, that the only purpose of this
man's death was to prove her loyalty and her strength.
And that thought made it hard to carry out the orders she had been
given.
"Phax, move it".
Jhiera was getting restless. Demons never stayed in the mortal's world
for long--- witches could always scry for them, and whitelighters could
always feel them. Besides, she hated being up here just to
baby-sit the new demon-in-training.
Specially when said demon-in-training refused to just kill the stupid
human!.
"Cut it out, would you?. I'm trying to savor the kill here".
Phax's voice was steady and firm, and she fooled Jhiera. Because it was
not the thrill of the first kill that was running through her veins...
it was something almost akin to disgust.
At herself.
Because everything she had done for the past year, was a prelude to
this.
Was meant for this particular moment, when she would kill an innocent
man, probably chosen randomly, to make her *kill*.
And she couldn't do it.
Her mind went back to the days in which she had sworn to protect people
like this. And suddenly she found herself seething with anger.
{Stop it already!. It's because of them you ended up in here in the
first place. Get it over and done with, all right?}.
She gritted her teeth, and rubbed her temples, fighting off the last
remnants of humanity, that grew dimmer with each passing day.
And with each breath, she moved closer to what she was supposed to
become.
When she opened her eyes, ready to strike, she saw out of the corner of
her eye as Jhiera stretched out her hand, muttering something about
newbies, and gathering an energy ball in it. It only took her a second to grab her arm in mid motion, and send the energy ball flying into the farthest wall.
"He's mine".
Jhiera's flashing purple eyes locked in on her, and Phax fought back
the urge to cringe under her probing gaze.
"Really?. Why haven't you killed him then?".
"You never shut up, do you?".
They faced off each other, Jhiera standing taller than Phax, and still,
the smaller woman holding her ground.
She had gotten pretty powerful in the last few months... she knew that
soon she would be able to fight Jhiera on fairer grounds. But not
yet. The she-demon could still knock her down with one hand, and she did
not want to return bleeding after her first assignment.
"Fine".
She crushed the light in her heart, that cried out in despair as she
called forth a fireball. She squashed her conscience, or what little was
left of it, and readied herself to throw the attack.
In the soft morning sun, the fireball shone with an eerie light of its
own, somehow so out of place in the world of mortals... She looked deep
into the flame, trying to destroy the last of her qualms with the fire
that licked her fingertips.
And it seemed to work, because she suddenly found herself not caring
about what would happen. She needed to do this, and she would.
Taking a deep breath, she threw the fireball.
And she watched with horror as the flames enveloped the limp body of
the man, and began consuming his flesh. She thanked whoever was watching
from above that he was unconscious... she wasn't sure she could've
handled his screaming.
The smell of burnt human flesh filled the alley, and invaded her
nostrils, forcing her to smell what she had done. She could close her eyes,
and block the image of the blazes away... but she could not shut down
her nose, and could not stop her ears from listening to the cricks and
cracks of bones breaking and melting down.
She looked at Jhiera, standing by her, her eyes fixed on the orange
flames, reflecting off her eyes and making them shine. She seemed
enthralled, so focused she was on them.
She turned to look at Phax, and bared her fangs at her.
"Beautiful".
Her whisper was seductive, and most obviously displaying the pleasure
she felt. The kill was addictive... and even if Phax had now hesitated,
she would soon feel the bliss of the godlike power she carried, and use
it without hesitation or scruples.
"Let's go".
Jhiera shimmered away, her stance blurry and shaky, before disappearing
completely.
But Phax did not follow her.
She stood there, her hair flowing in the morning breeze, her black eyes
focused on the scorch mark at her feet.
She had killed a man.
She had killed him. In cold blood. Shouldn't she be feeling something?.
Regret?. Sadness?. Nausea?. But she felt nothing.
Nothing.
She resented the lack of feeling, knowing it was the ultimate
indication that she was as dead as the demons she had once fought. She had lost
her ability to feel... and she was grateful. After this, there was
nothing she could not do.
A wicked smile danced across her tight lips, a smile of yielding.
She rose her eyes up to the sky, and through buildings and
clotheslines, sought the sky she hadn't seen in over a year. And found it darker,
different--- her black eyes were not made to experience the joy of the
skies, of a blue so deep that rivaled with that of the ocean.
And she smirked again.
Fine. The world turned its back on her, she would turn her back on the
world.
As she prepared to shimmer, a cloud waltzed over the sun, covering the
alley in shadows. The building loomed over her, their big bodies
keeping what little light was left outside. She did not care. She closed her
eyes, calling forth the teleportation magic.
And a voice echoed in the alley, breaking her concentration.
"Oh my God!".
That was the last thing she heard, before the whole alley was frozen.
**************************
Piper had meant to blow the demon up. She really had. She had spotted a
dark figure standing in the end of the alley, over black ashes, which
most certainly indicated a recent burning, that she was betting
was not a hobo's attempt at warming up.
She had thrown her arms up, fully intending in blowing the bastard up.
Even after a year, she sometimes screwed up.
She ran all the way to the end of the alley, Paige and Cole hot on her
heels.
Well, *Paige*, hot on her heels. Cole remained behind, something in the
air striking him as odd. It was--- electrified. Something he hadn't
felt in a long time. Not since Phoebe---
His trained eyes scanned the alley for further threats. There were
none. The demon was alone and seemingly just standing there when Piper had
frozen it. That in itself was strange, since demons did not loose
their time in contemplation as the world passed them
by.
The other thing that had him on his toes, was the way he was drawn to
the dark figure. Something about it called him, demanded he move
forward, and look at it deeply.
"That's it!. You're dust, buster!".
Piper raised her arm, ready to blast the demon into oblivion, when the
clouds stopped covering the sun. And the light came back, illuminating
the dark alley with the hot morning sun, and they were able
to see the figure in front of them.
"Impossible...".
Paige's silent whisper was the only thing that broke the heavy silence
that settled on the air. In fact, it seemed the whole world had been
frozen, as no sounds broke the eerie quiet.
Piper couldn't believe her eyes. She did not want to believe her eyes.
And yet, there she was, standing in front of her, *frozen*... her baby
sister. The sister she had deemed lost.
{Phoebe...}
Tears clouded her vision, and she gasped for air, as any and all doubts
she could have had about Prue's parentage were destroyed, because of
the living, breathing proof that greeted her eyes.
She knew it was Phoebe. Their sister bond was crying out, roaring in
her ears, awakening from a year old slumber.
Cole had stopped dead in his tracks when he saw her. His heart had
stopped beating, and it was suddenly hard to focus.
It was impossible... he had felt their link break, had felt her soul
dying--- and yet here she was, in front of him.
"Phoebe...".
He moved in, fully intending on gathering her in his arms, to hug the
life out of her, and to never, ever let go--- when his eyes saw
something that was not supposed to be there.
She was frozen.
Piper had frozen Phoebe.
And the realization hit him just in time, because Phoebe's form
blurred, as she fought the temporal stasis. And she broke it.
*******************************
Phax knew something was wrong when something in the back of her mind
told her she had just missed a few heartbeats.
Well, that, and the fact that suddenly, there were people in front of
her.
People that had not been there before, when she had began her shimmer.
And when she took a good look at who was standing in front of her, what
was left of her heart lurched in her chest, and caught her completely
by surprise.
Because there--- right there, in front of her, stood the one she had
grown to hate in the past year.
{Cole...}
The thought sprung forth with such force, it surprised her. Yet, she still had the presence of mind to keep quiet, and biting back her tongue, she pushed it back. She called for his other name, the one she had fought to acknowledge him by.
Belthazor.
She pushed back the dizziness that threatened to grab hold of her, and
forced herself to smile. And managed to ace it, as
the grin that curled her lips, was one of unspeakable evil.
"Hello, family".
And she even surprised herself, with the calm and steadiness of her
voice. Her mind was a turmoil of emotions, emotions she had thought had
died along with Prue... but here they were, back with a vengeance.
Had she still possessed the ability to cry, hot, wet tears would be
gathering in her eyes, and threatening to spill down her cheeks.
It was as if someone has stuck a vacuum inside of her, and turned it on
without warning. And it was destroying every wall she had built around
herself, every lie she had forced herself to believe.
Her eyes were fixed on the unmoving form of the half-demon, who just looked
back at her, his eyes unbelieving...
From across the alley, their gazes locked, and sparks seemed to fly, as
the dormant passion awoke. Because even if she hated him, even if she
deemed him responsible for the death of the most precious thing she had
ever held in her arms, it seemed she still lusted for him.
And it seemed so did he.
Her keen eyesight allowed her to see as his breathing increased, and
his heartbeat accelerated. His hands tightened into fists, and she could
tell he was having trouble keeping himself in place.
"What, no hug, *lover*?".
Cole took a step back at the hate that practically dripped off her
voice. And the spell she held over him began to break, as he took in the
changes she had experienced.
But what struck him the most, what hurt down to the bottom of his
heart, were her eyes. They had lost their sienna glow, and now looked back
at him through depths of darkness. Black... they were black. And he knew
humans did not change eye color.
He drank in her sight, her beloved form, her luscious curves, not one
ounce out of place, not one trace that she had bore a child. She was
thinner than he remembered her to be--- but she was still Phoebe!.
Her hair was tied back in a ponytail, and stray strands of hair flew
back and forth, framing her face, forcing him to look deep into her eyes.
And in them, there was not a trace of the woman he had known, of the
woman he had fallen in love with.
And still, his body reacted to her, awakening from the slumber it had
been in ever since their link had been broken.
He consciously told his lungs to keep on breathing, and took a hesitant
step forward.
"Phoebe?".
Phoebe brushed her hair aside, tucking it firmly behind her ear. Her
moves were forced and harsh, and Cole realized she was battling her inner
demons, just as he was doing right now.
"Now that's better, lover. Although I was expecting a warmer welcome".
Piper took that moment to advance forward, and stretch out an uncertain
hand to her long lost sister.
"You're alive...".
Phoebe's eyes focused on her soft fingers, and watched in silence as
they drew closer to her, intending to touch her---
In the last second, she shimmered out of the way.
And grinned in devilish pleasure at their astonished gasps.
She reappeared a few feet away, her stance a bit more confident, her
body language bolder.
"Not quite, *sis*".
It was then that Paige spoke, her voice loud and clear in the silence.
"Piper, Cole, back away. Now".
The two turned to her, their eyes wide and unbelieving.
"What?".
Piper's reply was cut short when Phoebe snorted, as she absently looked
at her long fingernails.
"The kid is right, witch. Step away before you get burnt".
She refused to look at them, could not bear to look at them--- was it
humanly possible to be feeling like this?. Relieved, angered, nauseated,
and overjoyed at the same time?.
It was all so confusing--- she took a deep breath, as she tried to keep
her emotions in check.
{Come. Now}
The order echoed inside her head, and she trembled unconsciously, still
uncomfortable with the fact there was a disembodied voice speaking
directly into her brain.
Fine. She would go back. She ignored the soft whispers in the back of her head
that mocked her, telling her that she was relieved she was excused
of this--- meeting.
The Source was calling, and what the Source wanted, the Source got. But
she would rather deal with him, than with the
awestruck people that were staring at her right now.
She looked up, and locked gazes with Belthazor.
"We will continue this later, lover".
And she shimmered away, but not before his voice drifted over to her,
his words ringing like the proverbial Horn of Justice in her ears.
"Like hell we will-- we're finishing this now!".
And even if her heart was frozen inside her chest, their link had awakened, and Phax could feel as he shimmered behind her, following her into the recesess of the Underworld.
**************************
Tbc...
