Hi guys I'm back again. And before i do anything I'd just like to say how sorry i am that this has taken so long to update. When i started university back in september i never realised how hard it would be and getting any regular updates for any of my fics has been difficult. Thats not the only reason I'm struggling to ut this fic into some sort of order and I'm hoping now i've wrote this chaper others will start to flow better.

Once again sorry for the wait and yes i know it's been one hell of a long wait!

Disclaimer: The Secret Circle and the characters belong to L.J.Smith I'm simply playing nice.

To my reviewers...

mephistopheles1: Thanx for thereview! I'm pleased you liked the chapter andonce again i'm so sorry for makingyou waitso long hopefully the next chapter will not be so long in coming!

Lady Of Masbolle: Thanx for the review! I'm so pleased you liked it! Even if it did take me ages to actually get the chapterup! Again sorry about that! I never meant to leave it so long.

Indian Ink: Thanx for the review! Here is the next chapter! Months late i mightadd ihope you read on!

Ok so without anything further to say...I think you've waited long enough here is chapter three!

The Power Within

Chapter three: Messages From Nowhere

Once they were inside the house Diana pulled out her mobile phone and punched and sent a call to every one of the Club using a signal they had developed over time to use in an emergency.

"It's simple really." Diana said as she punched in the numbers. "I ring their mobiles, house number, whatever and I let it ring twice before hanging up then they know to meet at my place an hour after the phone call."

Cassie looked at the clock and gulped. "It's really early though." " I know." Diana grinned "And I guess Faye, Doug and Chris will complain at the earliness of the hour for different reasons but trust me all of them will get here."

Within the next forty minutes the entire Club appeared in the house. "It is such a good job my dad is on a business trip this weekend." Diana grinned as she shut the door for the last time.

"Ok who wants to be the first to tell me why I had to drag my arse out of bed so early on a Saturday for a damn meeting I'm sure we made for about six hours time." Faye sneered.

"An emergency came up." Adam said looking at Faye. "Sorry to interrupt your beauty sleep we all know you need it." Doug, Chris, Melanie and Lauren all coughed into their drinks. Funnily enough Cassie could have swore they were laughing.

"We thought the emergency was over as in yesterday." Lauren said forgetting her laughter and focusing on Diana and Adam. "Evidently not." Adam said grasping Cassie's hand.

She smiled at him gratefully. He winked. "What happened?" Deborah asked looking at Cassie closely. "You look like you haven't slept in forever." "Thanks Deb." Cassie said sarcastically. "But that's part of the reason you're here."

"Cassie had another dream." Diana clarified for the Club. "I knew you were going to say that." Laurel said frowning. "And I know that's its not going to be good." Melanie finished what her friend was saying.

Now all the attention was on Cassie and she felt like squirming under their gazes. But she was one of them now and so she stood tall. They would help her figure this out. Together they would be able to do this. She didn't have to be alone anymore.

"I had a dream. A Nightmare actually. But it was so real." Cassie said looking at the floor. She was afraid of what they were going to say. Everyone had nightmares after all what if they thought she was being stupid? But it had scared her stupid and she couldn't help how she felt no matter what she did.

"And?" Faye said leaning against the doorframe. "Cassandra you've had dreams before." She said her dark eyes boring into Cassie's lighter ones. "What's so important about this dream?"

Cassie looked at Faye and realised she was right. Cassie had had dreams before. She had showed the Club where the ancestral tools were hidden through a dream.

Adam looked at Cassie's face and seemed to see her internal struggle because then he said. "This was no ordinary dream." "Obviously." Faye scoffed rolling her eyes. "I think we've clarified that. Otherwise we wouldn't be here." "Stuff it Faye." Laurel said throwing Faye a death glare. "This is important."

Melanie and Deborah looked at Cassie intently and said, "What happened in your dream?"

Cassie looked round the room Faye looked bored, Melanie, Laurel and Deborah leaned forward sensing it was important. Adam and Diana stood off to the side but close enough in case Cassie needed help but she was stronger now. She could do this. She was joint leader of the Club for Goddess' sake!

She could do this.

"What happened Cassie?" Shaun said speaking for the first time. He looked fearful at the prospect at something else happening after the downfall of Black John. Shaun had suffered the most but he looked at Cassie and she could see a determination to see this through.

Doug, Chris and Nick simply stood quietly waiting for her to continue. Cassie closed her eyes and took a deep breath she found her courage and buried her fear and when she opened her eyes she was able to retell her tale to the whole of the club.

Once she had finished she realised the whole of the Club was staring at her. There it was again. That feeling that everyone else knew something she didn't. It was a feeling she didn't like at all.

"What?" She asked at last. Laurel came forward and said, "Are you sure that's all you can remember of the dream?" Cassie thought about it and then nodded. "Yes. That's definitely everything it scared me half to death. It wasn't nice." "No." This surprisingly coming from Chris, "It wouldn't have been."

"Ok." She said putting her hands on her hips. "What do you guys know that I don't?" Melanie and Laurel looked at Diana and she nodded.

"We believe that you have had another past life experience." Cassie started. Why hadn't she thought of that? It wouldn't be the first time she had gone through it, after all that was how she had known where the tools were, right here in New Salem in her grandmother's house.

"But I've done that before." Cassie said not understanding the significance. "That's how we found the tools and believe me this was nothing like that. Nothing like that at all."

"No we believe this is different." Diana said nodding. She looked at Melanie. "If you and Laurel could explain." Laurel nodded.

"It is believed by many that we all have past lives which change each time we return back to earth. It is thought that we learn something new every time we are on Earth." Laurel said. Melanie nodded and then said, "Past Lives often show themselves in numbers of ways including dreams and moments of déjà vu."

Cassie nodded she was understanding so far but she still didn't understand what this had to do with what she was experiencing. Was it another Past Life coming to bite her in the arse?

"But sometimes for witches they end up being so much more, as you've experienced they can influence what were doing as when Kate showed you were to look for the tools."

Cassie nodded again. "Yes," She said firmly. "But as I've said before that was different to what I feel now."

Melanie looked up and said, "Yes well it would because if I think you're experiencing what I think you are what we're trying to tell you is that…"

Cassie stopped listening as she felt rather than saw someone touch her shoulder; she spun round expecting to see someone behind her but all she saw was Adam and Diana looking at her expectedly.

"Did any of you guys feel that?" She asked rubbing one hand up and down the other arm to get rid of the chill she suddenly felt climbing her spine. "Feel what?" Nick asked stepping forward.

Cassie looked around once more and shook her head. Get a grip Cassie! She scolded herself. You're stronger than this! Stop jumping at shadows!

"Nothing Nick. It's fine honestly. Just a chill. Sorry Laurel carry on." Laurel looked at her but didn't comment.

"As Melanie was saying What we're trying to explain there are times when our past lives, for lack of a better term pass through time and space and come and bite is in the arse."

"Ok." Chris said. "We get that." "But what we want to know is why." Doug finished off his brother's sentence.

Cassie!

Cassie jumped and spun round the voice wasn't someone's she recognised but she certainly felt as if she should know them. She couldn't figure out if the speaker was male or female but their voice was certainly compelling.

She looked at Adam and he frowned but she shook her head she didn't want to explain how she was hearing things now as well. First dreams and now hearing voices no one else could see?

Smooth Cassie she thought to herself Smooth.

She turned her attention back to the matter at hand she wouldn't know what to do if she didn't pay attention and the Club where taking this seriously the least she could was listen to them without jumping at thin air.

"It's simple really." Faye said shocking everyone. She stepped so everyone could see her one hand on her hip looking as dark and as beautiful as ever. "In times when we are seen to be in danger from the past a past life is sent as a warning. Something must have happened around now sometime in the past and the dreams are being sent as a warning."

Everyone stared at her. She finally looked up from where she had been examining her nails and said, "What?" Seeing the whole of the Club stare at her she rolled her eyes.

"Honestly you'd think I do nothing around here." "That's because you don't." Nick quipped. "You usually just stand there and look intimidating." This surprisingly coming from Shaun.

Faye seemed to think about it for a moment and then shrugged and smiled at them. "Well what can I say it is a gift." Deborah snorted and said, "As much as we'd all like to bow to your higher power Faye we have more pressing matters to attend too."

She looked at Adam and Diana. "So what do we do? How can we help?" Diana looked at Faye and Faye nodded. "There should be a spell that can help us with that."

Cassie was listening carefully thinking about what was being said, "So this spell what would it do?"

"If it's the one I think Faye is speaking about I don't think it's a good idea at all." "Why?" Cassie asked but she realised she wasn't the only one asking. Shaun, Nick and Deborah had asked too.

"Because," Diana said "And correct me if I'm wrong Faye," "Always little Cousin." Faye smirked. Diana and Adam rolled their eyes. "The spell would likely send the speaker back in time. To the time when the Past Life is sending the message."

Faye and Adam nodded. "That's right. The spell is designed to take the speaker back in time to the time and place the past life is contacting from and find out and possibly correct why they are contacting the future at all."

"I don't like that idea." Adam said as soon as Faye had finished speaking. "I second that." Deborah said. "I third it." Nick said. The Club proceeded to voice a general consensus that that spell was a bad idea and they didn't like it.

"But if it'll help then surely it would be better than nothing." Cassie said. "There is something wrong and I can feel it and personally I'd rather cast a spell than have to through the pain again."

"I still don't like it." Adam said. "I don't either." Diana said gently but at the end of the day it's Cassie that must choose this is her dilemma after all."

Cassie was about to answer when she heard a shout of CASSIE!

She spun round and found that once again there was nothing there? Was she hearing things? The remains of a nightmare that she couldn't quite get rid of?

Before she could ask the wind came again and this time it knocked her off her feet. Almost as if her legs ha been taken out from under her. She yelped as she hit the floor and Diana gasped "Cassie!"

Cassie stared up at the ceiling from her place on the floor. What the hell was that? She thought. She felt like her breath had been knocked out of her and she was struggling to breathe.

Diana rushed to her side and helped to her feet. She brushed herself down and was about to reply that she was fine when the voice called out again.

Cassie!

She was catapulted against the wall and when she tried to move she couldn't. She tired to move her hands from her sides and it was almost as if she was tired there, she could almost feel the rope rubbing welts on her wrists. The more she struggled the tighter her bonds seemed to become.

She gasped as she felt a hand at her throat and it was almost as if she was looking her captor in the eye though she couldn't quite make out his features she knew that look anywhere. It was one of pure evil.

She looked and the room had fallen away and all she could see was a platform and hundreds of jeering faces screaming about the devil's spawn and witchcraft.

She could see them, she recognised them some had been her family and friends but that time was gone now lost from the day she had been accused. Her captor looked her in the eye again and whispered in her ear,

"Choose me or the fire!"

She spat at him.

She would sooner die than become his servant. She had done no wrong and she would face God knowing she had done no wrong rather than choose life. Her captor snarled a smile as if he had always known she would rather die and turned to the waiting crowd.

The rowdy, bloodthirsty crowd and yelled, "The witch has refused to repent and now for her crimes I'm sending her straight to hell!" He threw his flaming torch onto the dry straw and they caught immediately.

The crowd screamed in triumph and the smoke rose black and acidic. Cassie tired to bite back a scream. She would die with dignity. The smoke was choking and she started to choke.

The flames were getting higher burning her feet. She coughed and her eyes streamed and she writhed at the knots. She knew she was dying no one was going to help her.

No one.

She felt the flames burning her skin and the smoke burning her throat and she screamed and right before she passed out she heard Diana scream her name and then everything went black.