Oni-Gil: You are a much better drawer than you make yourself out to be. Just take it one at a time and you can do it! Thanks for reading!
Kings Lioness: All my stories aren't graphic I hope. But I'm glad you were ok with it. You were one of the readers I was slightly concerned about, as well as my own sister. Well, thanks for contiuing to read! Glad you like it!
Patricia L. Bryans: I have watched X-Files. I don't watch it as much as I used to, but then, I've only actually seen a few episodes, and you're right. It can get pretty graphic. But that doesn't stop it from being a good show! I had fun with the fight scene and with Paige learning a new aspect of her powers.
Chuckles1414: Oh, I hope my writing didn't give you nightmares! But that's kinda cool on the author's aspect of it...yay! I'm glad you enjoy it and thanks so much for your praise.
Aussie-Soccerfreak4: I'm glad you continue to enjoy this story as well, mate! I try to write suspensfully because I think that's some of the best writing and author can. Leaving the readers in suspense is so joyful! Thanks for reading, cobber!
Dr. Magic PhD: It means so much to me when I get a new reader to review my story! I'm so thankful that you've been following my story and glad that you have finally caught up! I apologize for the wait! There's been a lot going on around the home! Thank you so much for reading and reviewing!
A/N: Sorry for the wait! There has been a lot going on at my house, and I've not had time to update until now! One of my favoite chapters! Now the action kicks in!
-19-
Sam and Kate were bound to separate, hard-backed wooden chairs against the wall of the cave, the chords wrapped around their arms and legs cutting into their bare flesh. They were doused in a shadow from the massive wall, making it difficult for outsiders to see them, but they could see out. As they were brought to the cavern and tied up, the women were unconcisous, but now, as demons around them muttered among themselves, the two witches began to stir.
It was quite a fright to both when they first opened their eyes to see the demons surrounding them, but soon realized that these demons could do nothing to them. Yes. As soon as Kate began to gain control of her wandering and foggy mind and was aware of both her phyiscal pain and her surroundings, she blinked a few times, trying desperatly to clear a pounding headache, then turned her head towards her younger sister beside her and winced at what she saw. Sam's once beautifully brown and full face was now pale, thin and shining with sweat and a shallow gash on her forehead shone crimson in the weak torchlight. Her eyes were closed and she was still, but Kate could see her chest rising and falling sharply as Sam breathed, though her breaths were harsh and ragged.
"Sam!" Kate whispered, calling to her sister softly. There was no reply. "Sam!" She repeated. She saw Sam's eyelids flicker and Sam moaned slightly in response. "Are you okay?" Kate whispered to her sister but knowing the answer, concern shadowing her face, her forehead wrinkled.
Sam's eyelids flickered again and she slowly opened her eyes. Though the light in the cave was slight, Sam's eyes narrowed painfully, used to the pitch darkness of unconciousness. She did not turn her head to respond after finding that she was not able to without a sharp pain stabbing down her spine, but her eyes moved and she looked over at her sister through half-closed lids. "Now I am," she breathed sharply, trying to smile, but she was too weak and twitched in pain as her muscles protested. "Lucy?" She managed to ask.
"Safe, I guess," Kate replied, hoping against hope that she was speaking the truth. Something nagged at her heart when she thought of her youngest sister in the hands of demons, but she tried to conceal it. "She's not here, anyway," Kate continued with a sigh. "I really hope she's alive."
"Me too," Sam whispered gently. Each word that she spoke hurt. She was breathing irregularly after her experience with Lynxe, which she did not remember, and each time she inhaled her chest seared with pain. She hissed slightly as her ribs protested a deeper breath.
Kate saw her sister's discomfort. "What did they do to you, Sammie?" She moaned, tears springing to her eyes. She had not seen any of her sisters until now, and the sight that greeted her was not a good one. "I wish I could hold you right now. I wish I could help-"
"Kate, stop," Sam said, trying shaking her head slowly, but it was too painful so she stopped and hoped the tone of voice was enough to reassure her elder sister. "There's nothing you can do right now."
"She's right, you know." Lynxe had approached the imprisoned witches without them seeing her, with a bounce in her gait and a sparkle in her eye that niether had seen before. "There's nothing you can do. You're helpless, dying, and you have no one to help you, and nothing to do but watch your oldest sister suffer. We've made sure that you will see it all. You all have not been helpful whatsoever, and we've made sure that each of your sister's screams will make up for that. Hopefully, your youngest sister, Lucy, will come to save the day. That's our plan, anyway. We can't do anythign really exciting until we have all four of you together. As soon as she gets here, the real fun will begin!" She laughed in her heartless way, gleefully watching the Magicked Ones' expressions.
Unable to control herself, Kate fought her bonds as hard as she could, ignoring the chords that dug further into her wrists and causing her to bleed. "I swear, demon! You lay a hand on my sister and I'll-"
"You'll what?" The demon interrupted, swooping down upon Kate and leaning down so that their noses were inches apart. "You'll use your powers?" Kate was silent. She couldn't use her powers...she didn't think she could. "Think again, witch," Lynxe continued. "You haven't been able to use your powers in the Underworld yet, and I doubt you'll be able to at all. Our powers are much too strong for a single, pathetic witch to break through! We've made sure of that."
Hatred like nothing she had ever felt welled inside Kate's heart. Never before had Sam seen Kate like this. Kate had never been angry or had ever snapped at anyone, let alone challenge someone. She was out of control, livid with the threats of her sisters being hurt. Using the hatred inside her and squinting her eyes, Kate forced her telekinetic powers upon the demon like a powerful wave and sent the demon flying away from her. Lynxe was once again humiliated by the Magicked One as she flew through the air, her robes flapping and slammed into the ground a few yards away. "Think again, bitch," Kate snapped, managing a mocking grin.
With a snarl, Lynxe leapt at the prisoner, but Zoltof, who had remained in another part of the cave before now, stepped forward and motioned to two of his demons, who sprang forward and restrained the furious woman at once. Lynxe clawed at the demon's bodies, trying to rip free to get to Kate, her eyes blazing with anger and fury, but they held her tightly as she shrieked, "Unhand me and let me kill that impudent witch!"
Kate laughed, seething. "Go ahead. Let her go. I'll fight her even with my hands bound! Nothing a coward like you can't handle!" Sam couldn't believe what she was hearing. It was surprising enough for her sister to be talking to these demons, let alone threatening them.
Howling with fury, Lynxe dove at Kate, but she was forced back by the demons holding her. "You foul-" she snarled, struggling to find words as she glowered, livid, gnashing her teeth at the tied woman before her. No one spoke to her like that and lived! In fact, no one had ever spoken to her like that!
"Blindfold that one now!" Zoltof commanded, pointing at Kate. Kate struggled even more so as another demon approached her with a strip of black, mouldy cloth, holding it up anxiouslu. She fought hard as Zoltof's voice rang penetratingly through her ears. "If you are not quiet, I'll gag you as well! Though you will not see your sister, you will hear her screams very clearly as she dies slowly. Yes, and you will join her too if you don't shut it!"
"You can't stop me from hating you, demon!" Kate snarled, straining against the chair as the blindfold was thrust over her eyes. Darkness instantly surrounded her, causing her to see bright colors in her closed eyelids but she could still fight, and fight she did.
"Perhaps not," Zoltof's voice cooed, close to her head, causing her to shudder, and a hand wrapped itself around her throat, startling her still. "But I can certainly kill you. Then you will be dead and won't care about anything anymore. What say you to that?" The clawed hand sqeezed her throat slightly, just enough to cut off some breath, and just enough for a warning.
Kate did not know that she could hold this much anger in her body. Now she did not care about her life. "It'd be better than this!" She hissed, then strained, pressing her own throat tighter against the hand, shocking Zoltof with her nerve. "Go ahead! Kill me! When you do my sisters will be more powerful than you can handle and they will rip you apart for murdering me!"
Apparently, Zoltof had motioned to another demon, because a strip of coarse fabric had forced itself into Kate's mouth and over her tongue, gagging her efficiently. As the hand around her throat released her suddenly, she struggled as more claws fumbled to tie the knot behind her head, trying to gasp out hateful words, but the gag was effective.
"There would be no point in killing you now, witch," muttered Zoltof in Kate's ear, then he turned his eyes on the witch sitting beside Kate.
Samantha could do nothing but sit and watch her sisters' useless struggle with tears rolling down her cheeks silently. She did not speak, nor did she make a noise, saving her energy for what she felt could happen, but she barely held in any of her emotion and her tears betrayed it. She winced as the demon tying the gag finally slung a heavy fist into Kate's abdomen, knocking the wind and the fight from Kate at last, and he finally managed to tie the gag in place. As Kate coughed and spluttered, trying to breathe and spit the gag from her mouth, a shadow fell across Sam's form and she looked up into the red, furious eyes of Zoltof. "You're not going to fight?" He asked her, almost politely.
"I have better things to save my breath for, demon," Sam snapped, suddenly unafraid of the huge evil confronting her.
Zoltof chuckled softly and reached over and gently dragged a sharp talon across her throat as a warning, pressing too softly to draw blood but hard enough so that she got the point. "Like what? A rescue? An escape? I can assure you, we have mad the necessary precautions and will not let that happen. You will not leave this cavern alive, I promise you that," he said, laughing. "You might as well sit quietly and wait to die."
Sam jerked her head away from the demon's touch, seething and revolted. "You underestimate our powers."
"Perhaps," agreed the demon, starting to walk away. He stopped and looked over his shoulder at her, winking slyly. "But think on this: if I underestimate you, why have you not escaped from me yet?"
For once, Sam did not have an answer. She closed her mouth at last. It was true. She and her two sisters had not escaped. But then again, they didn't have the Power of Four. They didn't have their full strength. Even wihtout it they had survived this much. Sam didn't say anything else as she watched the huge demon approach Heather, who she saw was now tied to a pole, similar to Sam's encounter with Lynxe, but this time Heather was standing and her arms were tied behind her back instead of above her head, her face pale. Sam had not seen Heather either since the manor and finally saw her. Heather had been watching everything with damp cheeks. Her throat was bruised and slightly cut from her torture, and it seemed she had been having trouble breathing. But now she stood steadfast, trying to look strong.
Zoltof laughted as he reached her. "So now we meet the eldest Magicked One. Heather, isn't it?" Heather did not speak. "The Elders call you the Responsible One. Responsible of what? Your family?" Zoltof bowed to her mockingly, his hand twirling outrageously. "And what a grand job of it you do. Why, just look at your sisters," he offered, pointing across the cave. Heather did not obey, but instead, she stared Zoltof straight in the eye. Controlling his temper, Zoltof leaned closer and demanded again, "Look at your sisters!" Resigning, finally, Heather did.
She looked upon her younger sister struggling madly with her bonds, trying to shout out and scream and yell, but each of her words were made indistinguishable from the gag biting into her cheeks. As she watched Kate struggle for air, tears sprang unbidden to Heather's eyes. What had she done that made Kate be treated like this?
Then, Sam's eyes met her own. Sam stared into Heather's heart it seemed, her intensity frightening Heather. Sam was so strong. She would not reveal anything, not even when faced with death. It was then that Heather realized that she had not seen any of her sisters until this moment since Lynxe had attacked them at their home. Each of them had been unconscious since then, taken separatly for questioning, then being returned, barley alive, result of Lynxe's torture. But Lucy was gone. She wasn't here. Lucy. Heather had been exasperated with her sister for not making time to consult the Book of Shadows before the attack. What had she had to do? She had a meeting with her college literature professor. But really, what would have changed if Lucy had gone to check the Book? She probably would have been here now, weak almost to death, hopeless. Or, they would all be dead by now. But where was she now? Heather's heart wrenched. She couldn't already be…no, she would have sensed it. And Zoltof didn't want any of them dead. Where could she be, though, if Zoltof hadn't ordered her killed? If she had, in fact, been killed happened, then why had the rest of her family been tortured for information about Lucy? Did this mean...was she still alive?
While staring into Sam's eyes and thinking about Lucy, reality hit her hard: Heather had let her family fall victim to the most powerful demons in the world and she could do nothing to help them now. It would be her fault if her sisters were murdered. She had not protected them well enough.
"You see the result of your care, Heather?" The words slid slyly though Heather's ears, as if the voice had been hissed right beside her head. She did not blink, nor did she move, the words sinking into her brain. "Do you see how safe they are now?"
"Heather, don't listen to him!" Sam yelled to her sister, suddenly hearing everything the demon was telling Heather. He was provoking her, killing her with her own guilt.
Zoltof moved closer to his captor, putting his mouth next to her ear, blocking out Sam's voice so the woman could only hear him. She stared straight into Sam's eyes as he whispered, "You couldn't save your parents from death, or your baby sister Lucy. And now, your other two sisters are suffering and dying, and beyond your reach of help. You've failed them. You promised to protect them, and you failed."
Sam didn't know that she was struggling now, her arms working furiously to loosen her bonds from around her body, but to no avail. She looked at Heather's stony face and watched a single tear trickle down her smooth cheek, taking some of the dirt that caked her body with it. Heather's eyes, the chocolate wisdom in her eyes had now faded and they stared into Sam without seeing her, seeing only her own treterous soul. "No!" Sam yelled, fighting to break the spell that seemed to be wrapping itslef around Heather's heart. "Heather, what are you doing? Look at me! Look at me! I'm alive! It's not your fault! None of this is!" It was then that a heavy hand flung itself over Sam's mouth, stifling her cries so that Heather could only hear Zoltof's poisonous voice.
"It's your fault," Zoltof whispered, his claws silently slicing the chords holding Heather in place, but she did not realize what he was doing. Her eyes were blank and staring, picturing Kate on the floor, blood spurting from a deadly wound to her stomach, picturing Sam's eyes which were clouded over in death, blood streaming from the corners, and blossoming from her mouth. Her mind was filled with thoughts of Lucy dying a bloody death as she was stabbed once, twice, three times by an athamae, and all because of her. She had let her family down. No! Don't kill them, please! Kill me! No!
"It's all your fault," rang the voice in her head. It sounded so convincing, so sure of itself. It told the truth. "Everything is your fault and no one else's! The Protector of the Magicked Ones has failed!"
"NO!" Heather cried, dropping to her knees as her bonds fell away from her. She fell to the ground, her hands covering her face and sobbed into them, ignoring the dust that was caked on her. Her heart and soul were consumed by guilt and the grief of seeing her sisters lying dead on the ground. She was held captive by pain in her heart as she wept bitterly, unable to do anthing.
Zoltof laughed as he watched, then stepped carelessly over Heather's shaking form and headed towards Sam. The eldest witch was useless now, powerless, wallowing in her own pitiful grief. Her sister would prove to be easier to break now that she witnessed her sister's fall. But why even keep any of them alive anymore? The fun of torture had worn off. Couldn't an athamae collect the powers of at least one witch and store them until all four were here? As long as the other three powers did not overload the magic…but he needed to satisfy his lust to kill. He had a thirst now for death, and he needed to stem it before he went mad with passion. Besides, the eldest could watch, and to watch her sister bleed to death would confirm her fears and prove her guilt. Oh, this was going to be easy! A slight wave of his hand magically produced an athamae from the air, spelled and ready to use.
As Zoltof approached Sam, his cloak swinging off his shoulders and onto the sand, he watched Sam struggle uselessly against the ropes holding her and the demon's hand over her mouth, fear clouding her eyes. Jerking her head, she tried to dislodge the hand still covering her mouth, but no use. The witch couldn't avoid his touch, but she cringed anyway as Zoltof's hand closed around her throat and pushed her head back out of the way. The hand over her mouth vanished, but it grabbed at her hair instantly and held her head back. All the breath in her body was caught in her throat as Zoltof's other claw tore the collar of her pale red blouse open, revealing her heaving, unprotected chest, a wide target that wasimpossible to miss. Grinning triumphantly, he raised the athamae. "Long live the Magicked Ones!" Zoltof howled.
A brief jolt of pain shook yhe back of Zoltof's shoulder suddenly, jerking him firmly but slightly and breaking his concentration on Sam. "Take me!" A hard voice commanded, unlike any he had heard. Furious, the demon swung around to see Heather standing defiantly in front of him, ten yards away, her eyes like stone and her hands upraised. When his jaw dropped noislessly, she flicked her wrists and Zoltof shuddered again. He looked down at his tunic, where a small burn had appeared. Heather's power was no match with his own, but she was angry now, and anger made her stronger.
"What?" Zoltof snapped, angrily, staring disbelieving at the witch who, moments before, had been writing on the ground in pitiful tears.
"Take me instead," Heather repeated, her eyes dry.
The demon could not believe it. It took a few seocnds for his mind to finally start functioning again. He motioned furiously to Lynxe, who was instantly released from the demons and she scampered over and took over from demon holding Sam's hair, forcing it back farther, smiling wickedly at Sam's hiss of pain. She was intent on making this witch feel pain after what her sister had done. Zoltof was able to turn his entire attention to the eldest witch now. "You!" He barked with laughter now shaking his body. "Why should I take you?" He sneered, eying her distatefully.
Heather's chin raised. She didn't think at all. Her anger towards the demon bubbled. When Zoltof had approached Sam with the knife, Heather's vision of her dead sisters vanished all at once and then, quite suddenly, all she could see was Sam struggling as the knife raised. All the guilt in her was instead replaced by white-hot fury immediately, and she had stood abruptly to face Zoltof's back. Now, she glared at him, looking straight into his evil eyes. "Because," she replied, her voice carrying no tremor of doubt. "I am your key to gaining the Power of Four. I am the eldest, the most powerful, and the core of the family."
"But you're not. The Quiet One is the core. Perhaps, though, I should kill her?" Zoltof offered, his teeth bared, but when he moved towards Kate, Heather sent more power towards him, a larger and stronger blast this time, but again, making only a mark on his tunic.
"Get away from her, you bastard," she whispered audibly, anger coursing through her veins now after seeing another threat to her family. She would not let them down. "Why won't you face me? Afraid to be defeated by a…what was it? A powerless witch?" Her wrists flicked again and an even stronger burst of power shot from her hands and into Zoltof, who's eyes blazed with fury.
"Get out of it, witch!" He snarled, giving in to his hate at last. "You know you cannot defeat me!" He threw out his arm, palm outstretched, and sent a blast of green electricity shooting out of his palm and towards Heather. It struck her in the chest and sent her flying into the cave wall painfully.
"Heather!" Sam screamed, trying to watch her sister slide to the ground in a limp heap, but any of her further cries were sharply cut off by Lynxe's tugging at her hair.
"Shut it, witch," Lynxe hissed venemously.
The cruel laughter echoed around the cavern again as Zoltof stalked across to the fallen witch. Heather twisted in pain on the ground, then heard the demon stop in front of her. Fighting, gasping, she tried to stop the pain careening through her veins so she could stand and face him. "Pitiful," Zoltof sniffed, staring down his nose at Heater. "I'm actually surprised that you even left a mark on me. But believe me, my powers will leave a mark!" He aimed his palm at the woman and again she was hit with the green energy, and this time she was blasted off her feet and into the next nearest wall, which she crashed into, cracking her head on it. Howling with glee, Zoltof again approached Heather, who had meraculously remained concisous and now writhed on the ground clutching her chest, breaths coming out of her lungs in sharp gasps. "Prepare to die, witch!" He snarled into her face.
Now, he closed his hand, curling his fingers as if clutching an invisible boulder and quite suddenly Heather couldn't breathe. She gasped, startled, her hands instinctively going up to her throat, which was being magically influenced to squeeze her windpipe shut. Zoltof's power was cutting off her life-giving air supply and he wasn't even touching her. Grinning, the demon raised his arm.
Heather gasped and choked, feeling her body beginning to lift from the ground magically. She stared hopelessly at the demon as he watched her frantic movements and continued to lift her farther off the ground until her feet were dangling two feet off the ground, a wide smile breaking across his face suddenly. The witch would die within moments as her lungs shut down, and then her brain. He had won!
Then, just as blackness had darkned her vision and almost impulsively, Heather jerked her hands away from her neck and flicked them towards Zoltof's ugly face wildly. "AUGH!" The demon's flesh blistered burned as the Magicked One's power struck him square in the face. He released his hold on Heather as he grabbed at his face with both hands. She dropped to the ground hard, landing solidly on her hands and stomach, gasping and working to inhale. She had only seconds before Zoltof stopped playing with her and killed her out of anger. As she lay on the ground, she spotted the athamae, which Zoltof had thrown aside when he hit her with the lightening. Her mind worked as fast as it could through the fog that had eveloped her. As her enemy staggered backwards, clutching at his burning flesh, attempting to stop the burning, Heather's breath returned and her mind cleared slowly. It was her only hope, her only chance. The blade Zoltof was going to use on Sam lay in the dust a few yards away. If only she could reach it!
From the other side of the cavern Lynxe was watching everything, and then saw the witch's eyes flash to the dropped athamae and back to Zoltof, and realized what the fallen witch was planning. Releasing Sam's hair at once, the demonic second-in-command flaired suddenly red next to Sam and was vanished.
Heather had finally managed to push herself up and stand and was stumbling, breathless, towards the blade when the red outline of Lynxe flared back and the demon appeared, directly in front of her, holding the knife. Sam finally was able to look ahead of her, but what she saw has terrifying. Everything happened to quickly. Seeing her sister's intentions, she tried to yell a warning to her.
"Heather!" Screamed Sam, but Lynxe had already raised the blade triumphantly howling with glee. "NO!"
And then, staring directly into the eldest Miller's eyes as she tried to stop but kept coming forward, Lynxe took one step to brace herslef, then plunged the blade hilt-deep into Heather's abdomen, just as Lucy and the Charmed Ones sprinted into the cave.