I'm sorry you guys, you're going to hate me, and you should, but I don't have time for replies yet again, as I'm about to be forced off the computer in a matter of minutes! Really sorry! Hope you enjoy the chapter!
With A Little Help From Our Innocents Part 2
Pamela laid her hands on top of the deep blue cover of the Book of Shadows and closed her eyes. Her fingers run across the silver triquetra that seemed to stay gleaming in any light no matter how many people pawed at it. She took a sharp intake of breath and began to grin, before opening her eyes, "Damn, and… Damn!" She exclaimed, obviously impressed, "Woo, I need to sit down. What a rush!"
"You felt it?" Paige asked, eager to share the experience of feeling such power with someone else other than her sisters.
The teen's green eyes lit up as she opened the tome, gazing in amazement at the pages, "Wow…" She flipped another page, "This thing is amazing. It's even made your crappy entries look like works of arts."
Paige frowned in annoyance, clearly offended, "Hey!"
"Oh come on, marker pen scrawl can hardly compete with the stuff that it's been revamped into. I mean, look at the Woogy page!" The teen lifted the book gently to show her aunt the page. It was spread across two pages, one page dedicated to giving information about the true power of the Nexus, while the other had the spell written neatly in expert handwriting. The border of each page had wisps of black-purple smoke painted onto the paper. The darkness seemed to be trying to reach the information in the book, but many little balls of light had been illustrated to show the light beating back the shadows. It truly was a masterpiece. "A lot better than Phoebe's messy ballpoint handiwork, wouldn't you agree?"
Leo stepped forward from where he had been inspecting a smashed window in the classroom. The entire school had been wrecked during the fight between Prue and Satanos, the Elder still couldn't understand how the fight had been to everywhere on the premises. Even with magic, it would take decades to repair, "Don't get too attached to that thing. As soon as things settle down, I'm taking it Up There to get it checked out."
Pamela rolled her eyes, "You wouldn't be saying that if you could feel the vibe it gives off to us Halliwells. It's like…" The teen narrowed her eyes as she thought of something to describe the power, "A mini orgasm!" She suddenly exclaimed. The colour from Leo's face drained as Paige grimaced.
"Ew."
Piper raised her eyebrows at she looked through the large hole in the classroom wall. The witch could see all the way to the bottom of the corridor as hole continued through five rooms. It looked as if something had just kept running through every wall, smashing it to pieces as it went on with its rampage.
"Wow Prue, was it you or him that got thrown through six walls consecutively?" Piper snapped cheekily as she turned around to face her deceased sister, who returned her look with a glare.
"Actually, it was me." The witch turned around, looking at the large hole in the ceiling of the library that had once been separated from the other classrooms by strong walls, "But I gave as good as I got. I threw him into a loose pillar that made a big chunk of the ceiling cave in on him."
"Um… Honey, I think you missed the point of Piper's nagging…" Phoebe suggested with a cringe, earning a glare from both of her sisters and recoiling slightly. "Since when was I the middle sister of these two…?" The witch murmured to herself.
Prue turned back to her younger sister, "Look, Piper, at least I managed to kick his ass so he left. We're lucky only bricks and marble were damaged, especially since you guys didn't even think to evacuate the students."
"Okay, first of all, you didn't kick his ass out of here, we did, me, Phoebe and Paige. And second of all, we don't usually need to evacuate the students, because we have the sense to contain a fight! How do you know they were still here anyway? Did you tear through the dorms too?" The eldest Charmed One fumed, "This is going to take years to repair, even with magic. Do you realize what you've done? You've shot the education of your nephews and nieces to hell."
"Piper…" Phoebe began, attempting to calm her sister down. It was too late, Piper was already storming down the corridor as best as she could, climbing over large pieces of rubble and just managing to dodge a large part of plaster falling from the ceiling that was covered in scorch marks. "She's just a little edgy with everything going right now." Phoebe smiled, "Besides, you're the oldest, you should know better."
Prue held her hands up, "Hey, I'm not the oldest anymore, I was thirty when I died, so I shall be eternally thirty. And since the three of you have surpassed that age, I get to be the young screw up."
Phoebe was about to reply, before the shouts of a large group suddenly caught her ear. She turned, seeing her husband, Aidan and Andy come around the corner and into the obliterated corridor, each of them with stern faces and fearful eyes, "Why do I have a feeling I'm not going to like what you're about to say?" The witch groaned.
"Um… The students and teachers…" Andy looked to Brennan and Aidan for support. Both men stayed silent, leaving the former inspector on his own, "Well, they're extremely pissed at what you…" He glanced at Prue, but when he received a cold, furious stare, Andy decided to change his wording, "They're pissed at what the battle did to the place."
"Can't say I blame them…" Brennan murmured, "This place has been totaled." The mutant said with a hint of sorrow in his voice, placing his hand on a scorched wall, before quickly taking his palm away when he felt that the wall was still hot.
"You know, Brennan, that's not exactly the best way to win points with the sister in law you just met." Prue snapped, glaring at her sister's husband, "C'mon, let's go do some crowd control." She stated firmly, folding her arms and walking down the corridor towards the courtyard with Phoebe and the three men following.
The middle Charmed One was saddened to see that the once beautiful courtyard was almost worse than the inside. Fried patches of soil where still smoking from where something had hit them, it would be a while before anything would grow there again. The stone fountain in the centre was now smashed, the water now having nowhere to go and simply spraying upwards in a powerful jet. She watched as a few students tried to beat out the blazing fire that had engulfed the largest tree in the yard. Their efforts proved to be for naught when the fire intensified, becoming too hot for the teens to stand next to and they abandoned their mission.
"There she is!" Someone shouted as the group rounded the corner into the courtyard, making everyone turn around to confront them with fuming expressions. Phoebe cringed as the mob began screaming again, she gasped when she heard and saw a boy no older than fourteen shout something so obscene that even Pamela only said something like that on a rare occasion. Things like "Bitches!" and "Homewreckers!" were being screamed at the group. Phoebe finally decided to put an end to it by shoving her fingers in her mouth and letting out a high pitched whistle, silencing everyone immediately.
"Alright! That's better!" She shouted, "Okay, I know you guys are pissed off with us, but-,"
"Pissed off?" A teacher suddenly exclaimed in disbelief, "We've put up with you and your family for four years, hiding out here every time a situation gets rough, you're the Charmed Ones, yet you feel the need for protection that lesser witches than yourselves don't even need!" There were shouts of approval from various people, "Well now it's gone too far, you've destroyed the teacher's livelihood, the student's school, and all of our homes!"
"I know you're angry, but-,"
"And if that isn't enough, one of the most powerful demons that this world has ever seen now has easy access to us!" One of the seniors shouted, Phoebe recognized him from being in the basketball team with Zach.
"Would you please just listen to me…?" The middle Charmed One pleaded, but she was only met with more shouts and insults as the student body and school faculty roared in outrage. Phoebe put her hands to her forehead, clearly at her wits end. She looked her oldest sister for help, but Prue was clearly too overwhelmed with the guilt she was feeling and the guys were just overwhelmed by the entire situation.
"All of you, SHUT UP!"
The mob's shouts ceased immediately and Phoebe turned around, a smile going from ear to ear as she saw who had silenced the crowd, the witch had never been more happier to see Lexa in all her life.
"It's all well and good to be bitching and whining about how they've destroyed this place," The brunette argued, gesturing at Phoebe and rest of them, "But when have you guys lay your lives down on the line to protect people, huh? Never, that's when. It's always the Charmed Ones you run to when things get tough, well maybe this time, they need your help."
"Listen lady-," A particularly mouthy freshman began, only to be cut off by a searing bright beam of golden light just missing his left ear and obliterating part of a ruined bench that stood next to the wall. He looked as if he was going to wet himself with fear, touching his hair as he realized it had been slightly singed.
"Do that again and next time I'll aim a few feet lower and a little more to the right, got it?" The boy nodded vigorously before running to the back of the crowd. Lexa lowered her arm as the glow from her fingers faded, "Glad we understand each other."
"What did you mean by helping them?" A teacher spat, looking Prue and Phoebe up and down with disgust as she folded her arms defensively, staring coldly at Lexa as she paced in front of them.
The molecular let out a chuckle, "Are you kidding me? War." She replied simply, "There's an army in the Underworld, and it is getting stronger and stronger with every passing second. You think three witches and the riff raff that they've picked up over the years are gonna be enough to wipe out thousands of demons? No, it's not, they need your help."
Aidan decided to chip into Lexa's cause, "And if you help us get rid of Satanos, then you can rebuild this place in peace, with our help of course." The elemental added, "This is the last thing we'll ever ask from you, if you want us to leave after that, then we will. We'll be gone from your lives forever."
Phoebe watched as the crowd began to exchange hesitant looks with each other. She hadn't realized that it would take more than their usual efforts to defeat this enemy. It was something she was afraid of. It wasn't just her and her sisters in danger this time, it was everyone. Their kids, Pamela, Leo, Aidan, Brennan… everyone important in their lives would face certain death………
"I had the situation taken care of, you know," Phoebe said to her old friend in a matter of fact way as she made her way back into the library with Lexa. The students and teachers had decided to help, with the promise that the Charmed Ones would never come near Magic School again after the battle. Brennan, Aidan, Prue and Andy had stayed behind to organize them.
"Oh yeah, the whole 'head in your hands' thing told me immediately that you were in complete control." Lexa replied with a smirk, "Besides, you know me; I always have to make a great entrance. So where's my godson?"
"Staying out of harm's way." Phoebe replied immediately, "We could all die; I don't want Connor to join one of the many whose lives are hanging in the balance." She let out a sigh and shook her head, "I just don't get how you're here. How did you find out about everything?"
"Brennan contacted us a while after Emma's death. He told us about the army that he and Paige and saw when they were captured in the Underworld. And…" She led Phoebe into the library, where around thirty people were standing awkwardly with Riley and Cassy keeping them at bay, "We've been working on a little but of muscle ever since." Lexa announced triumphantly.
Phoebe narrowed her eyes in confusion, "Are these guys all mutants?"
"Yeah!" Cassy exclaimed with a grin and she and her feral teammate made their way towards the two women, "They're a little green, but we've been doing our best to get them ready. You wouldn't believe how packed Sanctuary's been, Adam was glad to get some space when we left to make our way here."
Lexa blinked a few times, "Oh, I don't think you guys have really been intro-ed." She said with a bored tone, "Phoebe, Cassy, Cassy, Phoebe." The two psionics gave each other small smiles, "Riley, Phoebe, Phoebe, meet the muscle. Or as me and Cass like to call him, Jackass."
Riley offered his comrade a wink, "Love you too, Lex!" He said enthusiastically, "And we've already met, although the last time you and everyone else were roasting that psycho super mutant on a rooftop." He kissed the back of her hand delicately, "If only we had met under different circumstances…"
Cassy gave him a disgusted look, "She's married to a hot guy and got a kid, you jackass. As if she's going to give into those big papa bear eyes." She said with a hint of annoyance, raising her hand and hitting him on the back of head.
"Damn!" He cursed, holding the back of his head and glaring at the blonde telekinetic, before turning to Phoebe with a smile, "Sorry, it's just my instinct to hit on a beautiful woman the first time a meet them."
Lexa frowned as she thought, "Wait, you never hit on me when we first met years ago.
"Yeah, me neither." Cassy piped up, looking up at the larger man with a scowl, wanting an answer that instant.
The ursine feral grinned as he put his hands up, "I rest my case!" He said cheekily, before running back to the group of mutants with Cassy shouting loud curses as she bolted over him with every intention of kicking the crap out of her teammate.
Phoebe let out a laugh, "I'm surprised you're not going after him after that." She said to Lexa, who sneered at her friend with an amused expression as she watched half of Mutant X chasing each other.
"Meh, she always gets him and kicks the snot out of him enough for both of us, why should I waste my energy on the loveable idiot?" The middle Charmed One gave her a look, "Aw… c'mon, you've got to know that was all a joke. You think I would have put with him for two year if I didn't like the guy? You know me better that."
"Yeah, it just brings back memories of you and Brennan constantly at each others throats and me and Jesse having to play mediators between the two of you." She replied, watching as Cassy leapt on Riley's back, tackling him to the ground. "So are Jess and Shal here?"
"Uh huh. They're with your sisters. But they all seemed to be dispersing to doing something else when we arrived. Brennan's sisters are here too." Lexa replied with a knowledgeable tone before walking off towards the mutant crowd to coordinate them. "I think they were doing some sort of locator ritual." The brunette added as she left, leaving Phoebe to wonder just what their new Book of Shadows was providing them with.
Pamela poured a jar of red sand into the small grey clay urn in front of her. She set down the empty jar after all of the crimson substance had been deposited, and took a meditating position on the floor where she sat. Closing her eyes, the witch took a breath, concentrating on her goal and almost going into a trance. She thought hard about her target, pursing her lips and suddenly opening her eyes.
"Dammit!" She cursed, "It didn't work! Stupid ritual…"
Jesse raised an eyebrow as he knelt down, looking into the small urn and smiling, "Pam, look." He pointed into clay pot as a small orange glow sprouted from the top, slowly getting stronger and bigger.
Paige leaned over the Book of Shadows, smirking slightly as she read it, "You guys might want to stand back…" She said quietly, almost singing with delight after reading the information, "Don't say I didn't warn you…"
The two witches were still peering before a brilliant golden light erupted from the urn with a blinding flash, throwing Jesse to his ass and forcing Pamela onto her back as a sphere of magnificent energy hovered above them. The teen groaned as she touched her mouth.
"I bith my thongue!" She exclaimed, holding onto her mouth in agony and making Paige laugh.
"Well, I did warn you. Maybe that'll teach you to listen to me more." The youngest Charmed One remarked as she sat down in an armchair that had a smoldering hole in back.
Pamela seethed as she got to her feet, brushing down her black jeans before looking at her aunt, "I really don't why you're sitting down, I didn't meet this feraltongue boy and since the tracker needs to be… tracked, you better get orbing." She suggested snidely. "Oh look…"
As the words came out of her mouth, the orange orb suddenly shot up through a large hole in the ceiling, disturbing more of the plaster and bringing it down on Pamela and Jesse, who were angered further as they began to wipe even most dust off themselves. Paige jumped to her feet, following the light with her eyes as it tore across the sky that was lit up by the rising sun.
"Aw… Crap!" She shouted, her body being devoured in a cloud of bright lights as she orbed out. The haze of blue and white shot up through the ceiling, pursuing the tracker just as Phoebe and Lexa entered.
The middle Charmed One looked up, spotting a glint of light disappear out the hole in the ceiling, "Where is she going?" She said in a raised voice, slightly angered at the fact that her sister was leaving at such a crucial time.
"She's recruiting." Jesse replied, going towards Phoebe hugging her, "It's good to see you." He said in a friendly way, pulling back with a smile.
"Hey, you too." The witch replied with a smile, looking at her niece with a smirk as Pamela flipped the pages of the new book with wonder, "It's amazing, isn't it?" She asked, grinning.
The teen nodded, "We just did a locator ritual. It's a lot more efficient than scrying and pretty hard to fool, so there's less chance of us getting tricked or lured into a trap. Another plus." She said, almost scoffing at the way they used to operate. Phoebe slammed her hand down on the book immediately, giving her niece a cold stare.
"Pam, scrying could have worked just as well."
She shrugged in response, "I was taking this thing for a test drive, what's the harm in a little locator ritual? It's better we find out these flaws right now other than in a life threatening situation."
"You took it for a joy ride more like," Phoebe said in a warning tone, "Look, Pam, I know this thing is cool and powerful, but we can't just throw our old methods out the window. The book may have changed but its purpose hasn't, we turn to it in desperate situations and as a last resort, not for something to do when we're bored."
Pamela raised an eyebrow, "Okay, first of all, chill out. It was a lousy locator spell, and this way, we'll know if works or doesn't work. It's the only spell I've cast so far, everything else has been potions that Paige or Emma made that have been put in here. So don't talk to me like I'm a novice, I've been a witch longer than you, Piper and Paige. In fact, those guys…" She gestured at Jesse and Lexa, "Have been witches longer than you, maybe not born witches but they've still had to cope with the power their entire lives. Just because you're more powerful, doesn't make you better…" Pamela finished with a hint of disgust as she left the room, storming out of the door and giving Phoebe a headache.
"Ugh… I don't have time to dwell on this. Where is Piper?" She asked Jesse wearily, who shrugged timidly, not wanting to push his friend too hard so that she'd snap.
"I have no idea." He admitted, "But she, Leo and Shalimar all orbed out somewhere, I think they were going to get more people."
Phoebe sighed and put her hands on her hips, "And where would they go to do that?"
The heat of the tropics hit Piper instantly as the orbs dispersed, leaving her with Leo and Shalimar on a dusty path. Plants surrounded them, each one looked more vibrant and bigger than the next, the eldest Charmed one gazed in amazement at the height of a tree next to them, she craned her neck back so much she had almost fell backwards. She hadn't taken the time to marvel at the island's beauty the last time she had been here. Walking forward a little, her back instantly tensed when a high pitched shrieking tore through the air, but when Piper realized it had just been a bird call, she laughed at her fright.
"Oh my God…" Shalimar breathed, her heightened senses being treated to the sounds of nature and the intoxicating aromas of the various overgrowth that surrounded them, "This place is spectacular!" The feral held her arms out wide, trying to absorb as much of the outdoors as possible.
"We need to hurry, the alert's probably already been sounded by us orbing in…" Leo looked around timidly. He had that he wouldn't need to return here after the five weeks of hell he had endured.
Piper made a small noise and waved his notion away, "Honey, relax. We go way back. Besides, battles are what they live for; it's a way of life, they're sure to help. And even if they don't there not going to-,"
"Get down!" Shalimar suddenly bellowed, diving at the couple with supernatural speed and tackling them to the ground.
Piper caught a metallic gleam that lasted for a millisecond as it passed by. Whatever it had been, had sliced off all the flower heads of the large plant on the side of the path. This angered her more than usual, as ever since she had retrieved her geokinetic abilities, she felt saddened every time nature was hurt.
She restrained herself from blowing up the warrior responsible as she got up to her feet. If it hadn't been for the current situation they were in, Piper would had laughed out loud when she saw the hulking bearded man caught in a headlock, courtesy of Shalimar.
"Make a grab for that sword and its lights out for you in one quick twist…" The mutant growled, beginning to turn the man's neck to show that she wasn't kidding. He immediately began whimper, sweat running down his bald head as he thought his life was coming to an end.
Piper walked towards the man, bending down to talk into his ear, "We'll release you if you take us to Freyja."
"Piper!" Came a gasp of a shout from along the path. The Halliwell turned around and offered the head of the Valkyries a warm smile. Freyja hadn't aged a day within the four years they hadn't seen each other, white-blonde hair cascaded down to her pale shoulders, barely covering the brown string that kept her turquoise pendent fastened to her neck, letting the gem sit on her front. Her clothes were still the same; dark brown suede gauntlets covered her forearms, silver wings decorating them as a symbol of her position and power.
"Freyja!" Piper returned with a grin, turning around and gesturing to Shalimar to release the warrior. The feral reluctantly complied, eyeing him suspiciously as he went to retrieve his sword from the ground, glaring at the blonde mutant that had reduced him to a spineless coward.
"Call off everyone else, tell them it was a false alarm." Freyja commanded her inferior, narrowing her eyes as he hesitated a little, "Now." She said with a dark raised voice, making the warrior flee in the opposite direction to carry out his orders. "What brings you to the island?" The Valkyrie asked kindly, smiling at her visitors.
Pier exchanged looks with Shalimar and Leo, turning back to her old friend and fidgeting with her hands slightly, "We need your help."
"Aidan, what the hell is this?" Paige exclaimed at the horde of soldiers that stood in the ruins of the Great Hall. The elemental turned around, giving his girlfriend a nervous smile and turning towards the platoon.
Each of them were dressed head to toe in gleaming silver armour, the Atlantian emblem imprinted on the chest plate with small blue jewels in place of the eyes of the leviathan on the symbol. Trident like weapons were held in their hands, almost double the height of each soldier and looked extremely deadly. Paige recognized this type of warrior as the ones that had tried to stop her when she had stormed the castle.
"Okay, you're all on standby for the time being, if the enemy comes you know what to do. I have faith in all of you, don't let me down. Make your king proud." He said firmly, and instantly there was a clatter as the soldiers all performed a salute before dispersing into social groups.
"You gonna explain now?" Paige asked with a raised eyebrow as Aidan walked towards her. Prue was making an entrance through a large hole in the wall, giving the soldiers odd looks as she passed.
Aidan looked back at his warriors, "Well, I sorta wanted to do my part to help out, you know? Piper's got Valkyries, Brennan got Mutant X, and Leo's away getting centaurs, I just wanted to do something…" He admitted bashfully.
Paige smiled, moving closer, "Sweetie, you being here is doing something, and it's keeping me together through this. I don't really want to think about you being in a big life threatening battle. I would feel better if you went Up There and-,"
"No, I'm staying. I want to protect you." He said immediately, completely dismissing the idea leaving his love.
The witchlighter sighed, "Why don't you go get Skye? And Maxwell, if you think that he's been trained well enough for a big battle, that's the best you can do right now, I would have been a lot happier if you had just did that in the first place instead of bringing them…" She sneered with dislike at the soldiers.
"Okay…" He whispered, leaning down and kissing her softly, putting his arm around her neck and pulling her closer, "Love you…" Aidan said quietly, caressing her cheek with the back of his hand. Paige leaned up for another kiss, and just as their lips met, Aidan was consumed in water and promptly splashed out to find his magical comrades.
The youngest Charmed One shook her head on frustration, "I hate it when he does that!" She exclaimed, clenching her fists in annoyance before she noticed her eldest sister making her way towards her, "Hey, how are the students?"
"Oh, they're all set, just trying to sort through all the stuff that was wrecked during the fight…" Prue bowed her head, "They found that girl Jenna under the rubble…" She admitted, her eyes already beginning to fill up.
Paige's heart skipped a beat as the colour drained from her face, "And…?"
Prue looked up, "One of the mutant's that came with Mutant X has the power of vitakinesis, she's been healing her for half an hour but Jenna's fading too fast and the healing isn't regenerating her body fast enough…"
"I'll go help." Paige replied immediately, sweeping past Prue and heading for the hole in the hall that led out in the direction of the dorms. She turned around as she left, "Prue, it's not your fault. If it hadn't been for you, there'd be a lot more casualties."
"… Jenna is one way too many…" Prue murmured.
Leaving with a shake of her head and a sigh, the witchlighter stepped out of the Great Hall and headed towards the dormitory. Prue began to walk down the corridor, heading towards where Piper was gathering their forces for something to keep herself busy. She was so concentrated on the floor that she didn't stop herself in time and bumped roughly into Andy, who quickly caught her before she fell back.
"Oh… sorry…" She said wearily, going to walk past him, but Andy gently put his hand on her arm, making her turn around to reveal her teary eyes. The mortal immediately turned his body to he was facing her properly, taking his hand away from her arm.
"Prue, what's wrong?"
The eldest Halliwell sister looked up, "Does nearly killing our daughter's best friend qualify as something to cry about…?"
Wordlessly, Andy held out his arms, letting Prue rush into them, silent angry tears falling from the witch's eyes as she held to the man tightly quietly weeping into his shirt as they stood silently in the middle of hall.
Phoebe exited the burnt out classroom, carrying all the potion ingredients she had been able to retrieve from the wreckage. She waddled along the corridor, barely able to see past all the jars that were piled up in her arms and almost crashed into the wall when she didn't turn in time. The witch heard the clopping of heels against the marble floor, craning her neck to see who it was.
"Let me help you." Pamela offered tonelessly, taking some of the jars and clearing Phoebe's vision.
"Thanks…" They resumed walking. The middle Charmed One's mouth opened and closed a few times as she struggled with what to say to her niece, "Look, Pam, about earlier…"
Pamela shook her head, "Forget about it, we're all a little on edge and we both lost it. Let's just leave it at that…" She said with the same neutral tone, making her aunt frown in confusion.
"I'm sorry if it sounded like I was patronizing you, it's just-,"
"I said it's in the past. Let's just leave it, can't really afford to hold grudges against the people you love, especially when you're facing certain death…" She smiled, "Although the chances of dying are starting to wear thin, have you seen the amount of people that have gathered to help?"
Phoebe's frown furthered, "What are you talking about? Last I heard, Piper had gone away somewhere with Shal and Leo."
"Well…" Pamela said, a full grin breaking out on her face as they rounded the corner into the courtyard, "Let's just say we've pulled our resources."
The middle Charmed One's jaw dropped at the sight in front of her. The courtyard was packed with a variety of war mongering magical creatures. The clattering of swords was the first thing that came to her ears as Valkyries sparred against each other, following the rigorous training pattern that Freyja, who was standing in front of her warriors with her hands on her hips, had set out for them. There had to about sixty of the demi-goddesses, each of them performing unbelievable feats of martial arts, gymnastics and sheer battling skills. Phoebe focused on one pair in particular as their swords clashed, both were locked in a battle of muscle, before one of them shoved a hand at the other's chest, throwing her opponent into the air with supernatural strength, only for the woman to perform a breath taking flip in the air and land delicately on the ground, stumbling slightly as she did and losing her balance.
"Your turn was off centre!" Freyja bellowed, having watched the fight, "If you mess up like that in the real battle, the enemy will not hesitate to run their weapon right through you! Understood?" Her eyes widened manically, making the Valkyrie nod vigorously.
"Yes Freyja!" The woman replied with a slight bow, before letting out a primal scream as she charged at her sparring partner, sword raised and ready to do battle.
Phoebe jumped as two men roared at each other; she turned around, flinching when their spears met in the middle of their clash. She was about to turn back around to the Valkyries, before doing a double take when realizing that the men were actually centaurs. The two in question were pushing against each other with their spears, growling as they tried to undo the other. They finally tore apart from each other, before racing in again for another deathblow, only to be thwarted by the other yet again. She flinched for a second time when they collided. It seemed to be a lot rougher than what the Valkyries were doing for training, but then again, the centaurs were bigger and stronger, and probably a lot more destructive.
"Not good enough! Do not waste your energy by fighting uselessly against one another, use your opponent's strength to your advantage and gain the upper hand!" A centaur shouted as he watched over all the sparring creatures.
Taking the advice, one of the centaurs performed a quick sidestep as him and his opponent clashed, causing him to lose his footing as he fell forward, crashing to the ground and disturbing the dusty remains of the courtyard in the process.
"Good!" The centaur who had been giving advice boomed, "Now, continue, and remember, your strength isn't always your greatest weapon."
"Yes, Rodan." The centaur that had fooled his opponent replied, going over to his downed comrade and offering him a hand, helping him up before returning to a fighting stance and galloping back into a jousting match.
"Pretty good, huh?" Pamela grinned at her aunt's expression, "Aidan got about fifty soldiers from Atlantis as well. I think we have a pretty good chance of holding off an army, don't you?"
Phoebe could only smile.
"How are you doing?" Paige asked the mutant urgently as the woman released an odd looking green glow from her hands over Jenna's bruised and beaten body. Some of the students had gathered, mainly because it was a distraction from rummaging through their charred possessions.
The auburn haired mutant shook her head warily, "My power is supposed to heal diseases, not broken bones. I've barely been able to keep her alive…" She said darkly, narrowing her eyes as she concentrated further.
"Okay, keep doing what you're doing. I'm going to need all the help I can get." Paige advised darkly as knelt down, putting her hands over Jenna's chest and releasing a brilliant golden light from her palms. She spun her head around, facing the students, "Give her some air, for Gods sake!" The witchlighter screamed, making the tight circle of people disperse and leaving the two healers.
Paige smiled slightly as the deep purple bruises on the teen's pale skin began to fade away, along with the bleeding welts that covered her cheeks. The light streaming from her hands came to a stop as it finished its job, Jenna's eyelids flickered as she came to, pushing herself up into a sitting position with a groan as she opened her eyes slowly, squinting at the sunlight.
"Are you okay?" Paige asked, rubbing the teen's back.
The dark haired girl smiled, "Considering that I got crushed by a ton of brick wall, I'm freaking fantastic…" She said sarcastically, letting Paige help her to her feet, "I should never have tried to move that boulder."
The witchlighter raised an eyebrow, "So wait, you didn't get stuck under there during the fight?"
"What? No." She laughed at the thought, "I thought I saw something shining under some rubble, so I moved one of the rocks that just happened to be holding up a large piece of shaky wall. I should have shapeshifted it into a big pillow or something, but I wasn't quick enough."
Paige breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank God…"
"Lemme guess, you thought that Pam would throw a fit if she thought Prue had killed me?" Jenna smirked, beginning walk away, "I think she's dealing with her own problems right now anyway…"
"What do you mean?"
The teen frowned, "What? You didn't know that Zach broke up her? Pretty asswipe-ish thing to do if you ask me, the least he could have did was make the dumping mutual at graduation, but he had to get in there first…" She let out a sigh, "Listen, I gotta go help. I'll see you later…" Jenna walked away, giving Paige a small wave as she left and leaving the witchlighter understand what the girl had just told her.
Piper looked on with curiosity as Lewis stood in the centre of the room, his eyes closed in concentration for whatever he was trying to do. The sun was beginning to set, casting a twilight glow over the grounds of Magic School. The lighting was beginning to make everyone nervous, knowing that they really were on the eve of the biggest battle of their lives. The witch became alert as a faint buzzing noise reached her ears, it was slowly getting louder. Piper raised her hands, preparing to attack whatever was coming, but she never expected what was about to happen.
A massive swirling cloud suddenly flew in through a hole in the ceiling. The buzzing became so deafening that Piper hadn't heard the various other animals make their way towards the room. She peered at the cloud, her eyes widening when she realized it was a gigantic swarm of hornets. Raising her hands, Piper prepared to blast hem out of the sky, until Lewis held up his hand, signaling for her to do nothing. She jumped when a roar brought her attention to the five large brown bears that were hulking through the gaping hole in the wall; each of them seemed to follow the other in complete precision.
More animals continued to appear out of nowhere, Piper felt a chill go down her spine as a wolf howl echoed in the air, a pack of the grey furred creatures making their way towards the centre of the room where Lewis was. The eldest Charmed One stood frozen in fear as one of the largest eagles she had ever seen swooped past her, just inches away from the top of her head. She had always had an irrational fear of birds.
"I thought you could only talk to dogs!" Piper exclaimed as the boy knelt to scratch the back of a wolf's ear, making it whine appreciatively.
"I've been honing my skills ever since the whole thing with Cerberus." He replied calmly, making a dampening gesture to all the animals as a sign to quiet down, "Emma helped a lot with my powers after it all, she's been amazing."
"How did she help you?"
"I'm one of her empath charges." He explained, "Although I haven't seen her in a while, where is she?" Lewis gave her a curious glace, making Piper begin to fidget with her hands as she struggled for an answer.
"Um…" She stuttered, "Emma's… Just taking some time off from the whole magic thing, yeah, she was just completely burnt out after everything with Lorna, Grant… She just needed a little break, you know?"
"Oh…" The teen's head drooped, "But she's been away for months, do you know when she's coming back? I mean, my new empath is okay I guess… But he's no Emma." He admitted bashfully, his cheeks flushing with embarrassment.
Piper suppressed a smile. She didn't need to be an empath to see that the feraltongue had developed a small crush on the deceased psionic, which made it even harder for her to lie to him, "Um… I'm sure she'll be back soon. It's been… really rough for her lately."
"Okay." He conceded quietly, before suddenly lighting up and talking to the animals he had summoned, "Okay guys! Just… be ready at any time! Do want you want until then!"
With various growls, screeches, and hoots of approval, all of the animals began to disperse. The large swarm of hornets buzzed loudly as they disappeared through the hole in the ceiling. Piper's eyes widened when two rhinos that she hadn't noticed suddenly ran past her, the ground shaking with every step their large heavy feet took. She watched in amazement as the animals almost seemed to fade away, the roaring, the howling, everything vanished.
It was something like this that set off a pang of sadness in Piper's heart. The first time they had met Lewis, he had been a scared little boy with a limited knowledge of the true potential of his gift, yet with Emma's guidance, he had become strong, well versed in his powers, and seemed to be a better person for the experience.
She smiled, now realizing that everything they had done ever since meeting Emma, had changed them drastically for the better. Emma had shaped them into the people they were now. Piper let out a chuckle when she thought that her and her sisters had really been in the same position as Lewis when they had first met. The three of them had never really been confident in their abilities, always doubting themselves at every turn, but the fear seemed to gradually fade within the time Emma had been with them.
"Thank you…" The witch whispered into the wind, turning away and walking out of the classroom, going to find her sisters. As she left, Piper failed to notice a small speck of pink light in the corner of the ceiling, a light being caused by one, lone, pink orb.
"Prue, I really don't think we should be doing this. I mean, we're both supposed to be dead after all. What if someone recognizes us?" Andy asked, looking around with wide blue eyes as they climbed up the steps of the apartment building, the eldest Halliwell sister charging ahead and leaving her love in the dust.
"Well, that's exactly why we took the stairs, so there's no chance of us getting recognized on the elevator. Besides, it looks as if you've gotten lazy during your time as a whitelighter, time to work off those love handles!" She grinned playfully, jumping up two steps at a time, "Besides, the person I'm after is a witch, he's not going to be surprised to two supposed to dead beings arriving on his doorstep."
The mortal took a deep breath, "Why are we even trying to get one witch anyway? It's not as if one if going to make the difference, especially since there's centaurs, Valkyries and all sorts of other guys…"
Prue stopped abruptly, turning around and raising an eyebrow in Andy's direction, "I'm one witch, did I not make a difference last night when you were all about to die?" She folded her arms, waiting for an answer.
Andy let out a sigh, taking advantage in the stop of the pace, "That's not how I meant it. Besides, you're hardly one witch when you've got the power of an entire Wiccan line at your disposal, not to mention you're Charmed."
She smiled wryly, turning back around and continuing to climb the stairs, "I'm not Charmed… I'm not… anything anymore. I'm gone." The witch said croakily with a hint of sorrow, "And we're doing this so that we can say we contributed." She answered his initial question flatly.
Andy took the next flight two at a time, catching up to Prue and putting a hand on her shoulder, "We don't really belong in this world anymore, do we? Is that why you're doing this?"
She shrugged his hand off, matching his stare with her emerald eyes, "Let's face it; I'm only here because I was a last resort, and you're here because of some cruel twist of fate. We don't belong; even if you were… are a whitelighter…"
He raised his hand slowly, cupping her cheek and looking at her face longingly, "The only reason I decided to become a whitelighter was because I thought that we could still be with each other somehow…"
Prue hesitated with her answer, "Was I really worth a decade of misery, Andy?"
Andy replied by suddenly diving down, catching her lips in a fierce kiss and moving his other hand to hold her face firmly but gently. Prue's eyes bulged with surprise before closing gradually, sinking into the act of love and letting out a small moan of ecstasy as she moved closer to him, draping her arms over his shoulders and returning the kiss with every bit of passion she could muster.
They eventually broke apart, the witch's mouth still hanging open a little in shock, "Wow…" She finally managed to choke out, swaying on the spot as if she was about to lose her balance.
"Yeah…" Andy replied with an inane grin on his face, "A stairwell of all places… Go figure."
Prue blinked as she looked around, smiling slightly when she saw the number on the door that was to their left. "Looks like we're here." She smiled, finally tearing herself away from Andy and opening the door into the lobby of this floor.
The hallway was tastefully decorated; it really paid to live here. Sophisticated miniature spotlights were embedded in the ceiling, passing a calming glow throughout the corridor. A beige carpet adorned the floor, with the original wooden floor boards running along the side. The elevator suddenly opened with a ding, making Prue and Andy freeze on the spot as they waited for whoever was in it come out.
The eldest Halliwell sister's jaw dropped in surprise at what she saw. A young African American man came out of the elevator, fishing into his jean pocket for keys as he balanced a brown bag on his hip. He was tall, around six foot five Prue guessed, and had a shaved head, the only hair on his head was the day old stubble around and on his chin that gave him a rugged look. But Prue smiled when she saw the one defining feature that told her this was who she was looking for, the metallic circular lens glasses that the young man adjusted after he pulled his keys out of his pocket.
Hugging the wall, the couple crept up behind him as he went to open the door to his apartment. Prue came to a grinding halt when the man's head suddenly looked up, as if he had heard something. When his head lowered back to the lock of his door, the Halliwell took one step forward, only for her and Andy to be picked up by an unseen force that threw them into the air, making them land hard a few feet from where they once stood. The man put his groceries down calmly to face the two people on the ground.
"I've been hunting demons for around ten years." He announced, in a much deeper voice than Prue remembered, "Do you really I can't tell the diff… Prue Halliwell?" His eyes widened at the sight.
She winced as her and Andy got to their feet, "I see you've certainly got your psychokinetic abilities under control, Max." The witch commented wryly, "You've changed a lot… What age are you now? Around twenty three?"
"Twenty three next month." He replied flatly, giving Prue and Andy a curious glance as if he didn't believe their story, "How do I know you're the real Prue? I mean, the last I heard she died seven years ago."
The witch rolled her eyes in response, "Well, why don't I tell you how we first met? You were sending me messages on my spirit board with your powers; you had been kidnapped by your friend's big brother and his boss, who wanted to rob a bank. I came to your rescue, got captured, and then me and you used our collective powers to kick their scummy asses. That a good enough description?"
Max gave her a long stare, looking into her eyes. Somewhere, the tranquil green orbs stirred a memory within him, "But… how?"
"It doesn't matter right now." Prue stepped forward, "We need your help."
A grin spread across Paige's when she saw the sight around her. The wreckage of the classroom had been cleared to the sides of the room, leaving the wide open space where a roaring fire was filling the area with a cozy heat, smoke funneling through a hole in the ceiling and clouding the starry night sky as it did. At one of the walls, there was a mattress, covered in what looked like a large pair of curtains.
"Surprise…" Aidan's voice came from behind the fire, where he sat on the floor warming up from the cold, "Are you going to come join me or just stand there?" He asked with a grin on his face as he watched his girlfriend look around in awe.
"Did you do all this?" She asked as she sat down on the floor, shimmying over to him and resting her weary head on his shoulder.
He nodded, "Yeah, I wanted things to be as perfect as they could be. Brennan and Leo have been helping me throughout the day with it whenever they had time." The elemental looked around at the make shift haven, "We did a pretty good job, don't you think?"
Paige looked around before smiling, planting a kiss on Aidan's cheek as he slipped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer so they could share each others warmth, "It's amazing… Although Piper and Phoebe are gonna be a little pissed that their husbands did all this for their sister in law and not them!" She joked.
"I think they'll understand." Aidan replied, a smile playing on his lips as he looked up through the hole in the ceiling as the smoke temporarily changed direction, allowing then to see the stars sparkle in the sky, "Beautiful…" He leaned down and kissed her head lovingly.
"Hmm… I know, they're really clear-,"
"I wasn't talking about the stars." He replied bashfully, making Paige narrow her eyes as she sat up, suspicious of his behaviour.
"Okay, just what has gotten into you, Parker?" She said with a smirk, moving closer and resting her forehead against his, "I never knew you were capable of such corny lines." That was a lie, as she had seen her so called perfect future just the night before. She frowned as redness began to appear in his cheeks, "What is it?"
"We've been through a lot, haven't we?" He suddenly blurted out.
Paige raised an eyebrow as she thought about the question, "Does 'hell yes' answer that question or do you need anything else?" She smiled, but it soon faded when he didn't smile back. Something was wrong, she could feel it.
He suddenly reached around his back; fishing into his pocket and pulling out something that literally made Paige's heart skip a beat. It was a royal purple velvet box. Aidan opened it, revealing a simple yet breath taking ring, a silver band of metal with a small diamond nestled in the middle, "I thought it would be a bit tacky to use the same ring, especially since it seems to be an omen of bad luck for us…" He explained softly, taking her hand.
"Aidan-,"
"Just let me get this out before I forget it all and make a fool of myself." He quickly cut her off, "Paige… you are…" He struggled to find the right words, "Everything, you're everything in my life that I could ever have wanted. You've blessed me with two beautiful children, who are, along with you, the most important people in my life. You're my soulmate, my one, my… everything." Paige's face drained of all colour as he continued, "We've been through so much, and yet, on this night, the eve of what very well may be the day we die, I have never been happier than right now, with you." Aidan swallowed back his nerves, determined to finish this, "I want to be with you for the rest of my life, whether the rest of my life be a day or fifty years, I just want it to be with you. So… will you do me the honour of marrying me?"
Paige looked up at his face, tears now rolling silently down her cheeks after hearing his plea. She felt it; everything he had said was what she felt inside. What was causing the hesitation? The thought of losing him again? Perhaps the thought of finally settling down? There were so many things left unanswered, things that she wanted to be answered. She just wasn't sure.
But as her eyes wondered down to the ring, sitting in his hand, Paige realized, that sometimes life was black and white, sometimes nothing had to be analyzed, sometimes there was just a simple answer, sometimes you just had to follow your heart. She put a hand over the one he had on her knee, and squeezed it tightly, a final tear streaming from her eye as she opened her mouth…
"Yes."
Chapter 39 "To Live To Fight Another Day" will be up soon.