"Wesley," Kim said in a soft voice, approaching Wesley, "you can save me. You can save us."
"Save us?" Wesley repeated in a monotone voice. An athame appeared in his hand in a puff of black smoke. He raised the weapon to his face and ran his free hand across the blade. "How? You're…dead…"
"You can bring me back," Kim announced, her voice echoing inside Wesley's head. "Your magic has the power to bring me back."
"But what can I do alone?" Wesley asked. "My brothers and I are stronger together. We can all help you."
"No," Kim said quickly, her voice deepening for a moment before returning to normal. "Your brothers don't understand. They're afraid of you, of your power. They don't respect you."
"They don't respect me," Wesley repeated.
"They're plotting against you right now," Kim added. "You must get them before they get you. Then we can be together."
"Get them," Wesley repeated. He took Kim's hand and they vanished in blue and white lights.
Matthew pounded the wall out of frustration. He, James, and Chyp had been trying to get back in the basement, but nothing they tried worked. Everything from nonmagical to magical that they could think to do, they did. However, whatever they tried failed.
"I can't hear anything," Matthew said, moving as close to the door as possible without being rebounded by the forcefield. "You don't think…"
"No," Chyp said. "I would be able to sense if anything happened to Wesley. He's still alive."
"Good," James said, exhaling. "We've gotta get back in there and help him. There's no telling what's going on down there."
As if on cue, blue and white lights appeared in the middle of Chyp, James, and Matthew. They all took a step back as the lights swirled around for a moment before slowly vanishing. In place of the lights stood Wesley and Kim. Without warning, Wesley lunged forward and jammed the athame into Matthew's side. With no room to jump back, Matthew winced as the dagger pierced him. James acted quickly and waved his hand, aiming not at Wesley, but Kim. Kim jerked as her body flew through the air and crashed onto the kitchen table, shattering it.
"Kim!" Wesley shouted, as he removed the athame from Matthew. He turned on his heel and threw it towards James, catching him in the arm.
"Dammit, Wesley!" James yelled. He ran towards Wesley and threw a punch at his face.
Wesley put both his hands up and caught James' fist. His eyes glowed the same orange color as Bokor's, and it was not long before he overpowered James, forcing him to his knees. Chyp had run to Matthew's side and put his hands over the wound. A golden light emanated from his hands, engulfing the bloody gash. Matthew felt warmth as the wound started to heal itself and took a deep breath. As soon as he was back to normal he jumped up and tackled Wesley to the ground, freeing James, who picked up the dagger and was about to throw it at Kim.
"Wesley!" Kim shouted, still on the ground, "help me!"
With an overpowering "NO!" Wesley managed to reach a hand out for the flying dagger. As it left James' hand, it unexpectedly stopped in motion as if someone had pressed a pause button. James angrily turned back towards Wesley, his face red. He ran to give his youngest brother some payback, but Chyp quickly jumped in front of him, trying to push him away. Being larger and stronger, though, James moved the Guardian out of the way. Chyp managed to grab onto James' waist to try and keep him from reaching Wesley.
"He's not himself!" he pleaded, trying to talk some sense into James. "He's not the one we should focus on, it's the demon!"
James stopped. Chyp was right. Wesley was only acting out of response to Bokor's powers. He reluctantly calmed down and focused on Kim. She, meanwhile, had recovered from James' attack and regained her footing. She grabbed the athame from where it hung in midair and prepared to throw it. James, anticipating what she might do, used his powers and redirected the athame toward the wall, where it harmlessly embedded itself.
"Leave our brother alone!" he commanded. He breathed heavily with determination.
"Your brother trusts me," Kim said, smiling defiantly and folding her arms. "He's mine."
"What makes you think he'll choose you over us?" James asked.
"Look at him," Kim argued, pointing at Wesley. He and Matthew struggled for control. Being controlled by Bokor gave Wesley much more strength than he would normally have, and provided a great challenge for Matthew. Chyp had joined in the tussle, but even with his added effort, Wesley still managed to hold his own. "He's powerless against me."
"Home…boy!" Matthew urged Wesley, grabbing one of his arms while Chyp took the other. They tried to pin him down. "Fight this! Remember, you're strong!"
"Strong," Wesley repeated as he continued to fight against his brother and Chyp. The word "strong" seemed to strike a chord with him as he momentarily stopped fighting. Matthew sensed it and continued trying to reason and convince him to stop. Meanwhile, James and Kim had engaged in hand to hand combat. James felt guilty at first for fighting a female, but he kept repeating in his mind that it was really a demon.
"Homeboy," Matthew said, "you're the only one who can break the spell! Be strong!"
"He's right," Chyp added. "This is your fight!"
Wesley stopped moving completely, prompting Matthew and Chyp to ease off of him. He stood up and watched James and Kim go at it. In a calm manner, he began to walk towards the two. James, catching Wesley in the corner of his eye, paused long enough for Kim to gain the upper hand, and she kicked him in the chest, sending him flying past Wesley and into the basement door, which burst open from the force. He quietly took her hand and faced Matthew and Chyp, who looked on in shock. Did their words mean nothing to him?
"I knew you'd choose me," Kim said in a sultry tone, handing Wesley the athame. She leaned in closer to him, whispering in his ear. "Now, take care of them so that we can be together."