"Can we trust him?" asked the demon looking at Peter suspiciously.
"If you were there you wouldn't need to ask that, Callan," said the Source. "His hatred of his father is worthy of a demon. I still have Turners' memories. I know how hard this boy tried to kill him the last time. As you know, hatred can very often twist someone, especially a human. And with his demonic heritage he would be inclined toward evil anyway."
"So why come to me?" asked Callan. "I'm not in the hierarchy. There must be other demons more powerful that can help you."
"Yes," said the Source, "but then I would have had to reveal to them my secret. That I was forced out of Turner. After I supposedly stripped the Charmed Ones of their powers. As I explained, they tricked us all by using a White Lighter instead of one of the witches. Many of the hierarchy would not be so willing to accept the truth. They would feel I might have betrayed them. I need someone I can count on."
"And how do you know you can count on me?" asked Callan.
"Because," said the Source, "you help me rid myself of the Charmed Ones without involving the hierarchy, and I'll give you what you've always wanted."
"Malevants' domain?" questioned Callan. "He won't like that."
"He will have nothing to say about it," said the Source. "Malevant is a traitor to the underworld. He works with the witches to vanquish me. You've always wanted to rule his domain. To be personal advisor to the Source. I'm offering you that opportunity now. Once the Charmed Ones have been destroyed and I take the Ascension Ceremony, you will rule in Malevants' place. And you will be head of the new Triad."
"You must want this very badly," said Callan. "Those are very prominent positions in the underworld."
"Yes, I do," said the Source. "The Brotherhood of the Thorn betrayed me once. Allowed the Charmed Ones to vanquish me. I have not forgotten that. But I need them right now to maintain control in the underworld until I can go through the Ascension Ceremony. Once that happens I plan to get rid of them. I will need someone I can trust to take their place."
"I assume," said Callan, "that I will get the necessary power to hold onto my new position once I've taken it."
"There will be only two demons more powerful than you," said the Source. "Myself, of course. And Coleson. You will have to answer to him but all other demons will answer to you."
"Coleson," Callan repeated. "Not a demonic name. It's a human name."
"He will have an appropriate demonic name once I take power," said the Source. "What I need from you now are enough demons to take care of the Charmed Ones once and for all."
"None of my underlings have the power to kill the Charmed Ones," said Callan. "Only Malevant had that kind of power."
"But I do," said the Source. "They need not kill the Charmed Ones. I will need them to keep the witches busy so that I can use my power against them. I need kill only one to end the Power of Three. It matters little which one. But once I had killed one of them the other two will be easy to deal with. And I will remember those who aided me as well as those who betrayed me."
"They may be witches but they are human," said Peter. "Even low level energy balls would be enough to kill them."
"Their magic protects them," said Callan. "We all know that."
"And once I have killed at least one of them," said the Source, "that magic will be weakened. Besides, it protects them. It does not make them invulnerable. Our young friend here is correct. While their magic protects them, their bodies are still human. Subject to the same frailties as any human. With enough underlings at least one should be able to get them. And as Coleson has said, even a low-level energy ball is enough to destroy most humans. They do not have our constitutions."
"A very tempting offer," said Callan. "I always served at Malevants' whim. Even though I was a full demon and he was only half demon. What will you do about him?"
"You may have the pleasure of killing him yourself," said the Source. "He uses his human form now. A form he has always claimed to be vile to him. But as I said, he now fights with the witches."
"I can't kill Malevant," said Callan. "If I could I would have done it long ago. He's too powerful for me."
"I can take care of that," said Peter. "Demons aren't the only creatures I've defended as a human attorney. I've even handled a few Dark Lighter cases."
"A Dark Lighter?" questioned Callan. "They are of less a threat to Malevant than I am. How do you expect a Dark Lighter to deal with such a powerful demon?"
"You forget about Malevants' origins," said the Source. "Malevants' mother was a White Lighter. The poison of a Dark Lighter bolt would be as effective against him as against any White Lighter."
"And as luck would have it," said Peter pulling a vial out of his pocket, "I just happen to have a bit of that poison with me. All you have to do is throw it on him. It will weaken him enough so that you can kill him."
"And as I said," the Source said, "you shall have the pleasure of dealing the death blow to your former master. I want him dead for his betrayal to me. I don't care who actually kills him."
Callan looked at the dark liquid inside the vial Peter was holding. He was only a mid-level demon with no hope of rising much further in the hierarchy than he all ready was. Now he was being offered the chance of a lifetime. The third highest demon in the entire underworld.
"What exactly do I have to do?" Callan asked smiling at the Source.
"Provide me with enough underlings to destroy the Charmed Ones," said the Source. "And say nothing of what we've discussed until after the Ascension Ceremony. Until then I am vulnerable. And if I do not become the Source you will never get what I've promised you. Once the Ascension Ceremony is complete you can immediately take your place as ruler of Malevants' domain."
"What of the other two on the Triad?" Callan asked. "Who are they going to be?"
"I haven't decided yet," said the Source. "Perhaps you could decide. That will give me one less decision to make. And allow me to devote all my resources to finally destroying the Charmed Ones."
"Very well," said Callan, taking the potion vial from Peter. "I'll help you defeat the Charmed Ones. In return I get to kill Malevant and replace him as ruler of his domain. And once you ascend to the throne I become head of the new Triad and your personal advisor."
"That's the deal," said Peter.
"Are we agreed?" asked the Source.
"We are agreed," said Callan. "When do you need the underlings to go after the withes?"
"Gather them immediately," said the Source. "They are making preparations as we speak. We are going to attack them before those preparations are complete."
"I'll return as soon as I have chosen who's going," said Callan.
Callan walked out of the chamber heading for the domain he would soon be master of. The Source just smiled at Peter. Everything was progressing nicely. Very soon his most hated enemies would be dead. Then he would deal with the traitorous Brotherhood. And finally, he would take care of this young upstart who dared presume to be worthy to rule over true demons.
"How do you think things are going?" Paige asked Michael as they sat in the living room of the manor.
"Well," said Michael, "assuming Peter was able to get in to see the Source, things should be right on schedule. If Cole has the Sources' memories then the Source should have his as well. He'll remember who Peter was."
"Yes," said Cole, standing by the fireplace, "and he'll also remember that Peter wants to kill me."
"Michael was able to change his mind," said Phoebe standing next to Cole.
"The Source doesn't know that," said Cole.
"It should be enough that Peter is pretending to want to join the underworld," said Michael. "I approached the Source about him once. Before the possession. He was intrigued by the idea. Especially since Peter was helping defend demons in the human court system."
"Why would he do that?" asked Paige, sitting in a chair in the living room.
"Peter never felt like he belonged in either the mortal realm or the underworld," said Michael. "As long as the demons didn't use magic, Peter would defend them against human authorities. In cases where it would be too high profile to use magic. It's not really much different from defending a human. As an attorney I'm sure Cole can understand the need for everyone to get a fair trial."
"Yeah, but demons?" questioned Piper.
"Innocent until proven guilty," said Peter walking into the living room.
"How did it go?" Phoebe asked.
"Better than I expected," said Peter. "I think there's still a trace of Coles' personality in the Source. He was reluctant at first. But I finally convinced him I wanted to join the underworld."
"Good," said Michael. "If our plan is to work he has to be convinced you're sincere."
"Oh, he is, trust me," said Peter. "Where's Leo?"
"He's with the Elders," said Phoebe. "He's filling them in on what's been going on."
"Okay," said Peter. "Oh, there is just one other thing."
"What's that?" Michael asked.
Before anyone could move, Peter formed an energy ball and cast it directly at Cole. The weapon struck Cole sending him flying across the room. Cole landed on a table that shattered under his weight and fell to the floor unmoving. Phoebe hurried to Cole checking to see how badly he was injured.
"Keeping a promise I made to my mother on her deathbed," said Peter, glaring at the unmoving body of Cole.
"He's dead," said Phoebe. "Peter, why?"
"Because," said a voice from the entryway, "the boy is a demon. What did you expect? That he would suddenly forgive his father his transgressions and you'd all live as one big happy family? How human of you."
They all turned to see the Source standing in the entryway. Next to him stood Callan. Behind them stood six demons in human form. The Source smiled as Piper, Paige, and Michael jumped up from where they were sitting.
"Now," said the Source, "it is time this was finished."