Disclaimer: Eh, Aaron Spelling and Brad Kern are difficult targets. But don't you worry, I'll get 'em. And then this will be mine! ALL MINE, MWHAHAHAHA! … But, at this particular moment, I don't own Charmed.

"Christopher… do you recall why you went insane last year, perchance?"

Chris felt as though the floor had completely given out beneath him. One word-- and not a nice word at that-- was suddenly resonating within his mind as dread and fear began to suffocate him.

Bianca seemed to have realized what Wyatt was planning as well, for at that moment she jumped back to her feet from her place on the sofa. "Wyatt, no. You-- you saw him last year. An insane Chris is not only a danger to himself, he's a danger to everyone else around him, too. You can't… can't put him through that again. He'll lose it again."

The look Wyatt threw his fiancée could have made even the great Penny Halliwell back off immediately. "Bianca, do you forget your place? Tell me you are not trying to tell me what I can and cannot do."

"No, I didn't mean it like that, Wyatt. Of course I didn't," Bianca instantly hastened to assure him. "It's just… I was with him when he was… was like that. It really wasn't pretty. Are you sure you want to… to put him through that again?"

But Wyatt ignored her, turning his attention back to his little brother. "You haven't answered me, Chris."

Chris stared at him, mouth too dry to even think of forcing sound out. Now his mind was thinking something along the lines of, 'No. Not happening. No. No. Not real. No. No, no, no, no, no, no…'

This was unbelievable. He was damn proud of himself for living through… through… those events… the first time around. How was Wyatt gonna come and force him to relive them a second time without even batting an eyelash? That was freaking unbelievable! Chris already knew Wyatt was more powerful. Everyone knew he was more powerful. Wyatt had nothing to prove. This was all so completely unnecessary it was ridiculous. Why was he doing this?

"I want you on my side," Wyatt hissed suddenly, seemingly able to read his baby brother's mind even though their bond had be severed the previous year. "If I have to drive you out of your mind first to teach you a lesson, then so be it. I am not losing you again."

"Wyatt, the first thing you did when you brought me back was try to execute me! You wanted me dead, not by your side!" Chris spat, mind still whirling. No, no, no, no, no, no…

Wyatt shrugged indifferently. "I knew you wouldn't let yourself be killed, so it wasn't a real execution, anyway. Just wanted to prove my point that you weren't going to change me in anyway by going to the past. What better way than to show you than letting you believe I'd kill you?"

Chris stared at him. This Wyatt really hadn't been affected at all by his trip to the past. Well… except… now his mind games were… crueler. Never before would he have threatened to make him go through… that again.

"So, are you going to agree to join me and never cross me again," began Wyatt evenly, kneeling down directly in front of Chris and locking their gazes, "or am I going to have to use your own power over memories to break you first?"

Chris couldn't break their eye contact, so he had no doubt in his mind that Wyatt saw the fear and dread cloud his eyes like a hurricane. This was suddenly becoming very, very real. Wyatt was really, honestly threatening to make him relive the day everyone had died. And Wyatt didn't make empty threats.

It was all Chris could do to keep the tears from welling in his eyes as the walls seemed to close in around him. It was getting hard to breathe. This was real. This was happening. And he had to make a decision. There was no escaping it. Insanity through grief, guilt, horror, and pain, or insanity through standing idly by as his brother took over the world and ruled with an iron fist?

There was no escape. No one was coming to his rescue. Bianca's hands were tied and everyone else was… dead. There was nothing. But… could he take on Wyatt? Would he stand even a sliver of a chance against his older, more experienced, more powerful brother? Could he stand a chance just long enough until he could run? Could he even run? Could he even stand? He had lost so much blood from the shattered glass. He had been severely battered in the fall through the floor.

He definitely couldn't stand up.

With a heave of hopelessness, he threw his stupid pride to the winds. "Wyatt," he murmured desperately. "Why are you doing this? I was just trying to save you. I wasn't trying to hurt you. I wasn't even trying to ruin you…"

There was a brief, almost doubtable pause, a flicker of emotion, before the Source spat quietly, "You betrayed me."

And without another word, another warning, Wyatt thrust his hands through the crystal cage and his long, magical fingers touched his little brother's temples. The boy gave a sharp gasp before his lean body went rigid… then limp.

There was another moment of silence. At length, Wyatt withdrew his hands from the cage, knowing the memory would play itself out on its own, and sat back on his haunches in a very un-Source-like manner. It was more like something a young man might do when he was completely stressed out.

There was silence again and Wyatt watched Chris with an unreadable expression. This was his little brother. This kid here, bleeding profusely, bruised, battered, and unconscious. This was the little one that had once come to him to get away from their mother when he knew she was in a bad mood. This was the same kid whose witty comments had never ceased to amaze him, whose brilliant green eyes would watch him, trying to figure out what he was thinking. This was his baby brother… the baby brother that looked so much like his baby sister that when they'd all gotten trapped in the black and white world, no one had been able to tell the difference between them. This was the one he himself had taught to speak English (mostly), taught to read and write in the language, taught to ride a bike… This was the baby brother that had taught him how to skateboard on handrails, stairs, and even walls.

The boy that wasn't even fifteen when he made the decision to do what he thought was right and headed a Resistance movement against him.

Did this kid even know his Resistance had been completely wiped out, yet?

Without a word, knowing perfectly well that Bianca was watching him, Wyatt leaned forward again and healed Chris's many injuries. The teen would be in bad enough shape when he came out of the memory without the physical ailments on top of it.

When the golden glow finally faded, Wyatt stood, straightened his shirt, and gazed down at his unmoving brother. "How long have you been there, Damien?" he asked indifferently without looking up.

"Long enough to see that you're not lost entirely," came the voice from the shadows. "We both know I'm supposed to be the only evil one in the family, Wy."

"So I take it my demons are vanquished," commented Wyatt, changing the subject. What was their obsession with good and evil? He wasn't evil! Power. It was just power! Not evil.

"What? You mean the ones you wanted to rape me?" Damien stepped out of the shadows, face completely indifferent, though his grey eyes were as piercing as ever. "Yeah, they're scorch marks on the walls. You really think I'd let that happen again?"

He leaned against the sofa beside Bianca, casting her a slight nod of greeting before turning his attention to his little brother on the ground. "Why isn't he waking up? You healed him, didn't you?"

Wyatt arched an eyebrow. "I didn't know you cared." But when Damien looked him squarely in the eyes, waiting, he continued despite his sudden want to vanquish the unprincipled little brother, "I locked him in a memory."

Damien watched Wyatt, apparently waiting for a further explanation, but when he received none, hinted, "And this memory that is so horrible would be…?"

"When I killed his Resistance team and the aunts and cousins." More indifference.

Damien merely watched him with a neutral expression for a few more moments as Bianca shifted uncomfortably. Then he sighed, said, "Wyatt, that's the most idiotic decision you've made since you were crowned Source," and shimmered out.

For a second Wyatt and Bianca stared at the spot he'd been in. Wyatt remarked casually, "You know, I never will understand how he can shimmer when he was born with orbing."

Silence. Then, "Do you know he was born with the power to orb?" Bianca asked, point already proven. No one in this world had known Damien before he was six years old.

Wyatt observed her for a moment, letting no sign of his thoughts show through, then cast his gaze back to his brother, who was now tossing and turning in his 'sleep.' Wyatt didn't feel a whole lot of pity. Just… regret. This was all so unnecessary, if that stubborn kid would just not fight him, none of this would have to happen.

Time went by. Wyatt had forgotten how long he'd held Chris that day… or, those days, rather. Wyatt knew he'd drawn out the torturing, giving Chris as many chances as he could have wanted to back down. But, of course, Chris being Chris, he hadn't backed down, even when Paris was dying. When Porter and Primrose were dying. When Prue and Paige were dying to stay dead. Wyatt hadn't enjoyed doing it, but his Aunts and cousins had served their purposes and he no longer needed them as he did Chris. And if he could use their deaths to his advantage… well, good. But it hadn't really worked to his advantage in the end… Chris hadn't backed down.

And Paris… Wyatt knew her from their childhood, for she and Chris had been practically inseparable for a while… such a gentle girl. Such a strong girl. He hadn't wanted to kill her either, but he'd already gone through the rest of that damnable team and she was the last before he had to move on to family members. Chris hadn't backed the f--- down!

More time passed. Chris stopped struggling within the memory and was now just still. Wyatt remembered with a pang of guilt how this had been the moment his baby brother had given up. This was the moment that Wyatt had officially tipped his brother over the edge. Not like the time Chris had been registered insane when they were kids. This was the moment when Chris had really lost his mind. And this was the moment when Wyatt had still had two more people to kill.

The blonde looked away again. It would be another hour, at least. He toyed briefly with the notion of going to that meeting with the other major power sources he was supposed to be in, but he knew he wouldn't. He couldn't leave Chris's side during this. He may be pissed off enough to do cause his little brother this pain, but he wasn't pissed off enough to enjoy it.

That hour mark came and went, and after a few more minutes Chris's eyes gradually began to open. Instantly, Wyatt noticed and knelt down, thinking about removing the power crystal that kept the boy caged. But… no. He didn't know how stable the teen was, and if he was really unbalanced, he could be very dangerous.

But it was better than a perfectly sane and stubbornly 'good' Chris, wasn't it? After all, during last year when Chris had lost his mind, he'd used the Dark Arts many a time. He would be much easier to sway, insane.

Without Wyatt's noticing, Bianca had thrown herself down beside him and was bending low, looking into the prostrate Chris's eyes. "Chris? Chris, it's Bianca. Do you know where you are?" He didn't answer. He just turned over onto his back and stared unseeingly at the ceiling. Wyatt watched his fiancée as she spoke. She obviously knew how to handle this version of his brother. But, he remembered suddenly, she was with him last time when he had no one else. She was the one that helped him make it through. "Chris," Bianca continued, knowing nothing of Wyatt's thoughts. "You are in the year 2022, Chris. It's been a year after that happened and you're okay now. Chris, can you hear me? Do you understand?"

Wyatt noticed the clear voice, the repetition of using his name, and made a mental note that it probably worked towards some good or another. He'd remember to do that when he spoke to him. If he ever got the chance to, with the way Bianca was taking control. He rolled his eyes with annoyance and amusement alike. She was an amazing person, Bianca. No wonder Chris had fallen for her, too.

The boy was silent. He didn't seem to be able to hear her at all. He didn't seem to realize he was out of the memory. He didn't seem to care.

His eyes were empty. Dead. Hollow. Void of everything. Take your pick. Wyatt recognized the look instantly from the first time. Damn. He'd driven him completely over the edge again. He'd been hoping Chris would merely be numb after the experience; numb enough to follow his lead without question.

"Kill me."

Clearly his desires were no longer relevant to actual events. "No."

Silence. Wyatt watched his brother some more. His lips had barely moved when he requested to be killed, and they had stayed closed during and after Wyatt had responded flatly. Now he was just staring at the ceiling again. Wyatt ventured a little further, now that he knew Chris knew he was here, and said in a firm voice, "Chris, join me at this moment or I will replay the memory again, and you obviously don't want me to do that."

Silence. Chris didn't move. Bianca looked at Wyatt, shocked and horrified that he would even threaten that. Wyatt ignored her; he had eyes only for his mental little brother. The silence stretched.

Then, "… you killed them."

Pause. "Who?" asked Wyatt, somehow knowing Chris wasn't just talking about his friends and family.

There was more silence. Chris still didn't move. But when he did speak, his voice was so soft Wyatt almost couldn't hear him. "… I told you where the city was… so you wouldn't kill her… you killed her anyway… and the people in the city, too… you killed everyone…" His eyes were so empty…

Wyatt was confused. "What city? I did that to get you to jo--oohhh. Oh." He had forgotten that part. The city of New Nirvana. It was one of the last cities left that had only human innocents in it, and held a good twenty thousand of them, at that. It was that city whose only defense was the fact that Chris had cloaked it, so it was invisible to the naked eye of evil. He couldn't find it, so he had taken Chris's team and last remaining family members (besides Damien and himself, of course) to torture until he told him. Of course, Wyatt really hadn't cared about New Nirvana. His line of thinking had been something like, 'If Chris gives in and tells me this, he'll have given up and will join me.'

Wyatt closed his eyes, and when he reopened them, they found his little brother's unmoving form and he felt his stomach turn. He made a mental note that from now on, he'd actually voice the fact that he wanted Chris to join him before he turned to torture. That way Chris would at least know what the hell was going on.

"Chris…" He began, somewhat apologetically, "I--"

"I folded, Wyatt!" Chris suddenly yelled, on his feet and telekinetically sending his surprised older brother flying. "I FOLDED! Do you have any idea what that meant? And you killed Prue anyway! You killed her after I told you! You killed everyone!"

Wyatt struggled back to his feet, furious for having been caught off guard. Otherwise, he could have caught that stupid telekinesis and thrown it right back. Glowering, he stormed back to Chris, only to find the boy curled up on the floor, sobbing and rocking slightly. "Wyatt," he whispered, eyes unfocused. "Why can't you just kill me? It hurts so bad, Wy. Make it stop. I don't wanna hurt no more. Make it stop, please…" He cried quietly, now.

Wyatt felt guilt grasp onto his heart like an iron fist. Without speaking, he knelt down next to his little brother, struggling to find something to say while vaguely wondering why he was even bothering. This wasn't the time for emotion! If he hadn't been so wrapped up in his thoughts, he might have noticed Bianca backing away quickly.

Before Wyatt knew what was happening, Chris was shoving him backwards angrily, no trace of tears anywhere on his face. "I hate you Wyatt! You deserve to die for what you did! I-- HATE YOU!"

Wyatt looked up incredulously from his spot on the ground in time to see Chris pulling an atheme into his hand telekinetically. "What the--!" The oldest was cut off abruptly as he rolled out of the way of the thrown ceremonial dagger. "Chris, have you lost your mi--! Oh. Dumb question."

This time Wyatt remembered he had powers as Chris flung a table at him. He threw it in another direction telekinetically and used the other hand to send Chris into the wall, holding him there firmly. "Chris, you cannot win this fight, so just give it up. I don't want to hurt you any more than I already have."

Chris, seemingly out of nowhere, burst into laughter, but it was an unnatural, painful kind of laughter. "I hate you, Wyatt. I hate you with all my heart and I want you to die. And I want you to take me with you. That sound good to you?" Chris nodded encouragingly and Wyatt just stared at him. This was just… insane. And oh-so wrong. "What's the matter, Wy? Cat got your tongue? Or-- better yet-- did one of your demon friends cut it out like you did Rose's?"

Again, Wyatt barely had to register what was happening before he was being thrown, yet again, into the wall by a very angry little brother. But this time when he got to his feet, he hadn't been expecting to find Chris using the atheme to carve a symbol in the floor, chanting under his breath.

Ugh, Wyatt didn't have time for this. "Chris, what do you think you're doing?" he demanded. Then he caught a verse of the spell and felt his patience leave him completely.

"Burn this place forever more

Through this rune on the floor,

Inhabitants dead before the dawn

So is my will, so is it d--"

Wyatt threw out his hand and Chris was sent tumbling backwards, atheme dislodged from his hand and flying into the air above him. Then it came whizzing down purposefully-- as though with telekinetic force behind it. "Damn it, Chris! Stop trying to kill yourself and just come with me! I'm not going to kill anyone else," Wyatt finished softly, throwing the knife into the distance before it could reach its target. Chris threw him a reproachful glare.

"Man, Wyatt. Why do you always gotta get in my way? Well, no matter. My powers aren't bound." And with that, he flung out his hand and magically sent the dagger straight at Wyatt again. Wyatt growled in annoyance. These attempts at his life were just pathetic. Did Chris really think he couldn't see a nine-inch long knife flying at his face before he had a chance to stop it?

"Chris, I said stop this nonsense! So, stop it!"

Chris stuck out his tongue in a very childish manner. Then the kid caught sight of Bianca, who was flipping through the Book of Shadows. Something at the sight made his face flicker into a solemn expression. His eyes found Wyatt again, but they were unseeing. "Why… didn't you kill Bianca?"

Wyatt, momentarily confused, also found Bianca at the book. He frowned. "Bianca, what do you think you're doing?"

She didn't even glance up. "Looking for a spell to un-insane-ify him. I can't stand this."

Wyatt opened his mouth to say something, probably something telling her she had no business doing something like that, but suddenly got a vibe of the truth. She was trying to find a time-traveling spell to send Chris back to his parents, where they could fix it themselves, and away from this particular Source. He let a haughty smile cross his features. "Bianca, I thought I had turned you."

Bianca still didn't look up. She didn't need to. She knew her cover was blown. Damn telepaths, she thought distractedly, now flipping furiously. If she actually knew this book, it might not be so hard to navigate as it was now. She had not even the vaguest of notions of where to look, and the book was thick. Very thick. "If you don't believe in good and evil, why do you say 'turn' me?" she asked, just to keep him talking instead of… killing.

"Turn you to my way of thinking," Wyatt clarified evenly, coming up behind her and also looking at the pages as she turned them. He wasn't going to kill her. Yet.

"So, also if you believe good and evil are nothing, why did you become the Source of all Evil and not an Elder?" she queried, shifting uncomfortably at how close her present fiancé was standing.

"The Elders do everything by council, whereas the Source has complete control over everything. I think you see which was my obvious choice."

Bianca stopped at a page about a demonic time-traveler. Then she saw the date of vanquish and continued flipping. She wasn't above using demons for help, but she'd rather not have to resurrect one to get it.

Suddenly, the floor started shaking violently and a wave of pure heat soared through the room, knocking Bianca clear off her feet. Wyatt, however, managed to stay standing, but had to squint through the continuing waves to see the source of the problem.

Chris was curled up in a corner, quaking violently, eyes wide open but empty and unseeing. He was mumbling incoherently under his breath. Blood was splattered carelessly across the wall behind him; Wyatt couldn't see that Chris was wounded anywhere, and that was a lot of blood.

The heat was getting unbearable. It had to be in the hundreds, Wyatt judged, as the wooden walls began to turn black and catch fire. The Book's pages were curling, flicking in the scorching temperatures. Wyatt flicked his hand and the family heirloom was instantly consumed in black orbs and vanished, going back to its place in Wyatt's own magically guarded alter room. He cast his eyes back to the floor to where Bianca was laying, unconscious and drenched in sweat. He sent her to a room at his base and sent a telepathic message to his followers, telling them to get four guards outside her door and a maid to give his fiancée a cold bath.

Now all that was left was his little fire deemer of a brother, who hadn't moved from his corner and hadn't ceased shaking and mumbling. Wyatt sighed. This was a really bad time to be developing a conscience.

But, all the same, it was developing and he proceeded to walk forward and take Chris by the shoulder. Chris instantly flinched, but didn't try to kill him or anything, so Wyatt was free to orb them out. He took them straight to Chris's old, long-since-used apartment at the 'Evil Base' and put Chris on the bed without bothering to try and talk to him. Besides, it already looked as though Chris was in the middle of a conversation… even if it was only with himself.

Wyatt stood back and watched him for a moment. It was safe to say, now, that this plan had backfired. Well, actually, not entirely. Chris wasn't trying to put together a new Resistance. He wasn't trying to get back to the past to corrupt everything Wyatt had worked so hard for. He wasn't even making sarcastic comments and threats.

So this plan had worked, the only drawback being that Chris was now insane.

Eh, Wyatt thought with a slight shrug as he flamed out. There's no such thing as a perfect situation. This is close enough.

Now all he had to do was turn Bianca again and make sure Chris didn't recover from this state. He was starting to like this more and more with every passing second.

The only thing the Source didn't know was that the Charmed Ones and Leo from the past were still expecting Chris to return to them, and now that they knew his true identity, there was no way they were going to let him stay in this messed up future once they found out he was here.

A/N: Hey peoples! I couldn't write out the memory as Chris saw it because I'd have to raise the rating for this fic, and seeing as I'm only fourteen myself, writing at the level of 'Mature Adults' just seems a little off to me. And also: For everyone who writes questions in their reviews, I DO remember them while I write so I WILL answer them… in the story. Don't worry, I'm getting to all of them and feel free to ask more. It keeps me on track, knowing what loose ends I still have. So, all in all, REVIEW!