Cole had left to complete the case he was currently working on. After breakfast was over, Leo asked the girls if he could speak to them in the living room. They all knew something was up. Leo wasn't acting like himself. He actually appeared to be nervous.
"Okay," said Piper, "we're here. Now what's this all about?"
"We need to talk," said Leo. "First, I don't want anyone getting upset. They had good reason for what they did. And once I've explained I'm sure you'll understand why."
"They?" Paige questioned. "This is about the Elders, isn't it?"
"Yes," said Leo. "Phoebe, do you have the spell ready?"
"Uh, yeah," said Phoebe pulling three pieces of paper out of her pocket. She handed one to each of her sisters. "Leo, I thought you said you didn't want them to know?"
"Know what?" questioned Piper suspiciously.
"The Elders asked Phoebe to write a Power of Three spell," said Leo.
"And you didn't tell us?" Piper asked looking at Phoebe.
"I asked her not to tell you," said Leo. "At that time I wasn't sure what was going on. And it was possible the spell might not have to be used. So I asked her not to say anything until we were sure."
"Okay," said Piper. "If the Elders are behind this it can't be good."
"Actually," said Leo, "they're trying to protect you."
"Sure they are," said Paige sarcastically.
"No, it's true," said Leo. "The spell is designed to force a demon out of a person it's possessed. When they asked me to ask Phoebe to write it all they would say was that you were in danger and it might be needed."
"Wouldn't a regular spell have worked?" Paige asked. "I would think possession would be a simple matter to take care of."
"Normally, it is," said Leo. "But this is a special circumstance. The demon is particularly powerful. And a regular spell might not be strong enough. That's why the Elders wanted a Power of Three spell. It should be strong enough to force out even this demon."
"You said we were in danger," said Phoebe. "Does that mean it's a demon we've encountered before?"
"Yes," said Leo. "Actually, it's the Source."
"We vanquished his sorry butt," said Piper.
"Not completely," said Leo. "Apparently the Seer used some form of ancient magic to prevent the Sources' essence from being permanently vanquished. It was able to possess a human. And the Source is beginning to take control of that human."
"I didn't think it was possible for that to happen," said Paige. "Not once a demon was vanquished."
"As I said," said Leo, "it was ancient magic. There is magic that's forbidden to be used because it's so powerful. You know of the Hollow. That's one example. But there are others. Some of it has been lost for millennia. And it's possible that some of it may have been discovered."
"So we have another innocent to protect," said Piper. "If the Source is possessing this human that means he'll remember what we did to him. No wonder the Elders were concerned. He'll probably be coming after us for revenge."
"Exactly," said Leo. "That's why they wanted the spell ready as soon as possible. Now that you have it you can use it to force the Source out of the host."
"Then what?" Paige asked. "Vanquish him again?"
"Yes," said Leo. "That's what Michael has been doing here. We've been arranging to do just that. He's going to gather some help. Once you force the Source out it will take a few moments for you to cast the vanquishing spell. You could be vulnerable and the Source will take advantage of that vulnerability."
"So this help," said Phoebe. "It will be other witches?"
'Probably," said Leo. "Michael's going to get enough to keep the Source occupied while you cast the vanquishing spell. Once you have forced him out of the host, the others will attack. They won't be powerful enough to destroy him but he'll have to defend himself. He won't be able to stop you from using the spell to vanquish him."
"Won't he just possess someone else?" Paige asked. "Like he did before?"
"No," said Cole. "The Seer won't be here this time to use the magic that she used before. Without that magic the Source will be vanquished just as any other demon."
"You said here," said Piper. "That means we're going to do it here in the manor?"
'Yes," said Leo. "This is where you're the strongest. You'll need that added strength against the Source. If everything goes as planned the host will be free and the Source will be permanently vanquished this time."
"So who is the host?" Phoebe asked. "And how do you plan to get him to the manor so we can force the Source out?"
"That's the hardest part of this," said Leo. "Do you remember what the Seer said when you vanquished the Source? You asked where his power had gone?"
"She said it went into the void," said Paige.
"Yes," said Leo. "But what we didn't know was that she wasn't talking about some void in the great beyond or something like that. It went into a void in a person that had been created earlier. When they lost a part of themselves, so to speak."
"I know you aren't saying what I think you're saying," said Phoebe.
"Yes, Phoebe, I am," said Leo. "The void the Seer was talking about was the void in Cole that was created when Belthazor was stripped from him."
"I knew it," said Paige. "I knew he was up to his old tricks."
"No," said Phoebe, tears in her eyes, "I don't believe you. Cole has changed. He's not a demon any more. You're making this all up."
"I wish he was," said Michael from the entryway. "I'm sorry Phoebe, but it's true. I've witnessed it myself. The Source has possessed Cole. And in a very short time Cole's personality will be so completely overwhelmed that there will be virtually nothing left of it."
"Michael," asked Leo, "I didn't think you were coming back so soon."
"Things have changed," said Michael. "I'll explain that in a minute. Right now we have to make the girls understand exactly what's going on here."
"So, Cole is a demon again?" asked Piper.
"Not exactly," said Michael.
"What do you mean 'not exactly'?" questioned Paige. "You just said..."
"I said the Source had possessed Cole," said Michael. "That doesn't make him a demon any more than it makes a demon of any other human that's been possessed. Cole is the same Cole you knew. But the Source is in control right now and that makes it appear that Cole has turned evil."
"I don't believe you," said Phoebe. "It's all lies. This is one of your convoluted schemes, isn't it? Just like when we first met you."
"I wish it were," said Michael. "Phoebe, you now some demons can possess people. It's traditionally one of the major abilities of demons. They don't do it so much now but in times past possession was a staple of demonic influence on the mortal realm."
"But not Cole," Phoebe said, starting to cry. "Not after all we've been through. Not when we're so close. It can't be true. It just can't be."
"Believe me, Phoebe, it's true," said Michael. "I believe this was the Seer's plan all along. To make you think you had vanquished the Source so he could attack from the inside, so to speak. You'd never believe Cole would be a threat to you. The attack would have come as a total shock. And it might have worked if the Seer hadn't needed Malevant's help in convincing the underworld the Source had returned."
"So what now? Phoebe screamed in anger. "You expect me to help vanquish the man I love? The man who's given up everything for me? You think I can just calmly vanquish him like I would any other demon?"
"No," said Michael. "That's why you have the spell you wrote."
"It's true," said Leo. "Once you have forced the Source out of Cole I'm going to orb him away to safety. So he won't be in any danger."
"He's right," said Michael. "Phoebe, despite what Cole may have done in the past, since Belthazor was stripped from him he's just another innocent. We're trying to save him, not vanquish him. If we can force the Source out of him we can vanquish the Source and Cole can continue to live as any other human."
"Yeah, a former demon," said Paige. "He'd be an evil human."
"Not necessarily," said Michael. "Without Belthazor's influence on him he'll be just as normal as any other human. With the propensity for good as well as evil. He can make the choice to be good. A choice I believe he's all ready made."
"So it's not Cole?" Phoebe questioned. "It's really the Source?"
"Exactly," said Michael. "You have to accept that and you have to accept it fast. As I said, things have changed. The underworld has all ready accepted the new Source. And he has plans to deal with the three of you and with Leo. And what he has planned could very well work. If we don't stop him first."
"We defeated him before," said Piper. "We'll defeat him again."
"I'm not so confident," said Michael. "This time he has magic that not even the Power of Three can stand up against."
"That's impossible," said Piper. "Nothing is stronger than the Power of Three."
"This is," said Michael "The Source has found several pages from the Tome of the Ancients."
"No," Leo gasped.
"The what?" Paige asked.
"The Tome of the Ancients," Michael repeated. "Magic so powerful that nothing can stand up against it. Compared to it, the Power of Three is nothing. Less of a hindrance than a water pistol against an upper level demon. And he's planning to use it against the girls."