TWELVE

The girls looked around the chamber they had appeared in. It looked like any of the other chambers in the underworld. Cole seemed to know exactly where they were but not even Leo could tell the difference between this chamber and the others they had been in.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Piper asked. "This place looks deserted."

"Beelzbor would keep it that way," said Cole. "He wouldn't want anyone trying to take his prisoner. But there are probably a couple of guards around. Just to make sure she doesn't try to escape."

"Escape to where?" Phoebe asked. "She's in the underworld. Where could she possibly go?"

"She may not know she's in the underworld," Cole said. "It would depend on why Beelzbor has her. He may want to conceal his true identity and let his captive think she's still on the mortal plane."

"So why does he have her down here?" Paige asked.

"You heard Talistar," said Leo. "He wants to create an evil Power of Three."

"Right," said Cole. "Call her a test subject for lack of a better definition. To make sure that he could mate with a human female. Not all demons can. My guess is he took some unsuspecting human to see if it were possible. Once he had done that he would put his plan into action. It wouldn't do him any good to try and create the evil Charmed Ones if he couldn't mate with a human female."

"That makes sense," said Piper. "Which means we may have more than just a female to rescue. She might have a half demon offspring, too. It would also explain why he's had her down here for so long without killing her. He would need to know that whatever offspring she produced was compatible with his plans."

"Exactly," said Cole. "Once he's sure of that he'll probably go ahead and kill her. Most likely after the child is able to survive without its mother."

"Wouldn't he just take the child once it was born?" Paige asked.

"Not necessarily," said Cole. "If the child were too human it would need a human mother to nurse it. Otherwise it wouldn't survive. Beelzbor would need to know that it would survive long enough for him to control it. He'll have to establish complete control over it so that when he does create his evil Charmed Ones he would be assured of being able to control them. Otherwise they might turn on him. Remember, demons rule by fear and intimidation. The stronger ruler the weaker. If his plan is to work the offspring would have to be stronger than he is so he'd have to make sure he could control them."

"Let's just hope that whomever he has guarding her they aren't very powerful," said Piper. "My powers are weakened down here and I'm betting Phoebe's and Paige's are, too. If they're too powerful we might find ourselves in trouble."

"She's a mortal," said Cole. "Beelzbor wouldn't waste his most powerful demons just to guard her. More than likely they'll be some underlings that aren't very much use for anything else. They'd still be enough to watch over a human with no powers."

"That's good," said Phoebe. "How much farther to you think it is?"

"Just ahead," said Cole. "If Malevant didn't know Beelzbor had her then most other demons don't either. He's probably been keeping her secluded so they wouldn't find out and guess what he's up to. Only his most trusted lieutenants would be in on what's going on so at least we won't have to worry about too many demons."

"It looks like there's a larger chamber up ahead," said Paige. "Is that where she is?"

"I think so," said Cole. "Strange that there haven't been any guards yet. I would have expected Beelzbor to have at least some kind of advanced protection."

"Unless he's not worried she can escape," said Leo. "If she knows she's in the underworld and can't get back without magical help she might not even try to escape. Why bother when there's nowhere to go. And if she's not trying to escape he wouldn't need any guards for her."

"That makes sense," said Phoebe. "What about other demons? Attendants or midwives or something like that?"

"Maybe one or two," said Cole. "Probably to get her what she needs. But they won't be a problem. Those are usually female demons and they don't pose as much of a threat. It's just any guards we come across that we will have to look out for."

"Well," said Piper stopping just short of the chamber entrance, "looks like we'll find out soon enough. The question is how do we figure out if this is the right chamber without giving ourselves away?"

"Leave that to me," said Leo, glamouring and taking the form of Pron again. "I should be able to get in and look around without too much trouble. If I run into anyone I can just pretend I'm another of Beelzbor's underlings and he sent me to check on her."

"Good idea," said Cole. "He would send someone to periodically check on her. Just to make sure she was okay. Now, if there are any female demons in there just act arrogant. Like they aren't worth bothering with which is pretty much as it is in the underworld. Once you find out if this is the right chamber let us know."

"Well, here goes nothing," said Leo, walking into the chamber.

He was gone several long moments. Piper kept looking around expecting at any moment that they would be set upon by guards assigned to protect the chamber. She knew it couldn't' have been long but Leo seemed to be gone an eternity. Finally Leo exited the chamber.

"She's in there," he said, looking around. "She's alone right now and she appears to be sleeping. I didn't wake her because I didn't want to risk anyone hearing us."

"Good," said Piper. "This should be easy. We just go in, grab her, and then get back to the manor. We can worry about explanations later once we're out of here. Phoebe, you have no active powers. You get the girl and then Paige can orb you out of here. Cole and I can keep watch for any guards that might show up. Once we have her out of here Leo can orb me out and Cole can shimmer out."

"Good plan," said Cole. "Come on. The longer we wait the more likely we are to be discovered."

Cautiously the group moved into the chamber. It was a large chamber with several outcroppings of rock that resembled areas to sit at. It reminded Piper somewhat of the living room of the manor. Several smaller chambers led off from the main chamber. Leo pointed to one saying the woman was in there.

Quietly Phoebe made her way to that chamber, Paige close behind. The others took up watch at the exit to the chamber watching for any demons that might show up. Phoebe entered the smaller chamber and found the young woman lying on an outcropping of stone that resembled a bed. She moved over to the woman and shook her slightly.

"Wake up," said Phoebe. "We're here to get you out of this place. We don't have a lot of time for explanations right now but we'll explain once we're safe."

The woman rolled over and looked at Phoebe, the hood still drawn obscuring her features. She didn't move for a moment. Tentatively she reached up and touched Phoebe's face as if to make sure she wasn't an illusion.

"Is it really you?" the woman asked.

"Yes, come on," said Phoebe, looking around. "We don't have a lot of time."

The woman didn't try to rise. Instead she reached up and pulled the hood of her robe back exposing her face. Phoebe just stared at the woman for a moment thinking she must be hallucinating.

"Piper." Piper looked back toward the chamber that Phoebe had just entered. It was taking entirely too long. Now, Phoebe seemed to be calling to her. Phoebe called to her again and slightly annoyed Piper turned and headed for the chamber.

"Phoebe, get her out of here," said Piper looking into the room. "We could be discovered at any minute and…."

Her voice trailed off as she saw the woman sitting up on the stone bed. Every emotion began to flood into her mind at the same time as she stared at the woman. It was impossible. It must be some sort of trick.

Sitting on the stone bed looking at her with a look of complete dismay on her face was her sister, Prue Halliwell.