Chapter Eight – Of Air and Earth
Leo put Phoebe down on her bed and looked at Piper and Paige, who were both standing at the foot of the bed. Paige had a sad look on her face, but there was something else there too. Immediately, Leo knew that Paige thought she was onto something but wanted to research it further before discussing it with them.
Piper, on the other hand, had a look of absolute composure on her face and Leo became worried. The Piper he knew would have been heartbroken at the sight of her sister on that bed, waiting for the Source to gain more power so his spell would finally kill her.
"I'm going to research something at Magic School. I'll be right back, okay?"
Leo looked at Paige, his suspicions confirmed. Piper didn't react at first, but continued watching Phoebe with an eerily emotionless look on her face. Leo walked up to her and put a hand on her shoulder. It was then that she looked up.
"Yeah, you do that. Leo, go with her and see if you can anything on that Amulet the Source used to absorb that girl, will you?"
Leo nodded, and gave Piper one more worried look before orbing out with Paige. As soon as Piper was alone with Phoebe she walked to the side of the bed and set down.
"I promise you Phoebe, that I won't rest until I've found a way to free you from this spell. I won't let you die, I won't…I won't lose another sister, because I'll die if I do. If you die, Phoebe, I'll die too. And I'll make damn sure to take the Source with me," she said, tears slowly filling her eyes, until finally a sob escaped her lips.
It was the first of many, and she cried her heart out as old wounds were re-opened.
"You should not cry for her yet."
Piper sat upright the instant the voice sounded, and she immediately turned to the door. An African-American young man stood right in front of the door, which was still locked. The old lock, much to Phoebe's discomfort, made a great deal of noise, impossible for Piper not to hear, which meant that the door hadn't been unlocked.
Piper didn't waste anytime and immediately threw her hands forward, but the young man didn't freeze.
"Sorry, that won't work on me…," the young man said, but Piper didn't let him finish before she repeated the gesture again, this time aiming to use another power. The young man held out his hands and Piper's attack exploded against his shield of air, strangely producing a gust of air that was so powerful that it blew out the window.
Piper looked at the window and was just about to try and explode the young man again when he extended his right hand and fired a jolt of lightning at her, using it as a rope of sorts to immobilize her.
"Now, can I trust that you won't try to make me explode again?"
"Why won't you freeze?"
The young man laughed at Piper.
"You should know by now that good witches don't freeze, Piper, even if their powers are millions of years old. I am the Air Elementani," he said and Piper gasped.
"How did you find us?"
"Air has always been the Element of Knowledge and Wisdom, Piper. Even before I got my powers, before they returned to the Earth, the Wisdom that comes with them was awoken and I recalled the entire history of my line, back to the beginning. And the more time passed, the more I recalled and seemed to learn. It is as if I have never been anything else but the Air Elementani."
The young man released Piper from the hold he had her in and walked towards the bed where Phoebe lay.
"And then I saw her…she was calling out to me. But this I don't understand," he said softly before taking Phoebe's hand in his. Immediately his body tensed in a way Piper recognized, and as soon as he let go of Phoebe's hand he bolted from the bed.
"You had a premonition, didn't you? What did you see?"
The Air Elementani had a strange look on his face, one that Piper interpreted as fear.
"I saw a Spirit of immense power, a ghost from the next realm come to aid the enemy. And I also realize now how it is that Phoebe could call out to me. The premonition I just had wasn't mine, it was hers. I saw it, because she shared it with me."
"But how? She can only share premonitions with…"
"Exactly. She and I share the same power, the same Element. And if I'm not mistaken...," he said while walking slowly to Piper. He extended his hand, and she took it. He closed his eyes and sighed, and a gentle breeze played with Piper's hair before he opened his eyes again.
"That's it! You, as a mother, share a connection with the Earth Elementani. And I'm guessing your other sister has a similar bond with the Water Elementani. Of course, it makes perfect sense! Your powers started to grow as the Elders were being killed. It was the cosmos' way to maintain balance, and each of you do represent an Element. How, may I ask, did you guys find the Fire Elementani?"
"Phoebe got some sort of premonition of her…well, not really a premonition. She said it had felt funny, different from her other premonitions. We chalked it up to her new powers," Piper answered slowly, still digesting the information the young man had given her.
"This is great! Now we can find the other two Elementani more quickly!"
T.B.C.
