FALSE MEMORIES

My first posted story here. Also my first Charmed Fanfic, although I have written fanfiction for other shows.

Disclaimer: The characters in Charmed do not belong to me. No infringement is intended, no profit is made.

Summary: Loved the Piper/Leo/Chris family dynamic in Season 6 so that's when this story is based. Set after Chris-Crossed and Prince Charming. Nobody knows who Chris is yet, but they're about to find out, courtesy of an unexpected visitor from the future…

Notes: Hi! Finally made it past the huge case of writer's block that I had with this part – phew! There's a lot of exposition and dialogue in this chapter, which I find difficult to write, so I guess that was the main problem. Anyway, I'm still not entirely happy with the result, but I've kept you waiting long enough for an update, so I've decided it's time to move on. Apologies for any rough edges therefore.

In case you've forgotten, our heroes and heroines have just found out who turned Wyatt, via a spell that helped them look into the future. Leo recognised him as someone named Alcathan, an unexpected discovery that shocked him to the core…

Chapter 25

Chris couldn't take his eyes off his father's pale face as he waited for him to say something – anything in fact. Leo seemed knocked for six though and simply stared at his wife and son in mute shock.

As the silence stretched out into an eternity, the young witch-whitelighter was vaguely aware of Paige getting to her feet and crossing to the Book of Shadows, obviously to look up Alcathan. Chris kept his attention focused on Leo though, knowing without knowing how that his father was their best source of information right now.

With a shudder, Leo shook off his stunned stupor and rediscovered his voice. "He won't be in the Book, Paige," he told his sister-in-law. "Nobody but the Elders know about him – well, nobody on our side anyway."

"Who is he?" Prue asked her former whitelighter.

"He rivalled the Source for dominion over the Underworld centuries ago."

"He didn't succeed though."

"No, but not for want of personal power. In those terms, he was – and is - the greater threat. The Source understood that it would take more than that however. He gathered a band of loyal followers, recruited Seers and other weapons to help him achieve his goal. Alcathan fought alone…"

"And lost," Prue filled in for him.

Leo nodded. "He disappeared from the radar after that. Various rumours floated around about his fate: that the Source had destroyed him or the Elders had imprisoned him for instance. But the truth was nobody ever really knew what had happened to him. He just vanished off the face of the earth."

"Seems like he's learned from his previous mistakes," Prue remarked.

"The Darklighter Army," Chris said in sudden realisation. "His followers…"

"And his weapon," Leo finished, turning his gaze on his baby son, who was watching the proceedings with a look of sweet innocence on his little face. "The ultimate power of evil and the ultimate power of good – together they'd be unbeatable."

"To which my future is daily proof," Chris said gravely.

Leo nodded and then frowned thoughtfully. "But Wyatt has the upper hand somehow," he mused half to himself.

"Which means there must be a way to overcome him," Penny said, "Alcathan, I mean."

"Why would he hide himself from everyone though?" Phoebe asked confused. "I know he's not very pretty but…"

"He knows the Elders would mobilise against him if they knew he was back," Leo cut in. "I'm guessing he doesn't want that to happen until he's ready to take them on. It's risky, you see, snatching Wyatt out from under our noses like this. So many things could go wrong. He needs to secure him before he announces to the world that he's returned."

"He never got to do that in my future though, did he?" Chris pointed out. "If he had, I would have known about him."

"I expect he used your brother as figurehead until everything was in place," Leo told his son, "And then when he tried to assume command…"

"Wyatt refused to give up control," Chris finished for him.

Leo nodded. "That's all conjecture of course, but it seems like the most probable scenario."

"So we lure him out into the open and vanquish him before he has a chance to get to Wyatt then," Paige said.

"I don't think it's as simple as that," Leo replied. "Alcathan is immensely powerful – it's unlikely that the Power of Three on its own will be enough to defeat him."

"Why not? We got rid of the Source, didn't we?" Paige objected.

"Yes," Leo agreed, "But it took every ounce of magical power that you and your sisters possess to do it. Don't be fooled by the fact that the Source won the first battle, Paige, Alcathan is in a different league entirely."

"Aren't you exaggerating just a bit, Leo?" Phoebe said then. "You said it yourself that Wyatt is the one in control in the future."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"What I mean is, if Wyatt can defeat him, then surely the Power of Three…" she broke off at her brother-in-law's insistent shake of the head.

"I think we've underestimated just how influential Wyatt grows up to be," he explained, glancing around at the four sisters and their relatives. "I don't mean just you, I mean myself, the Elders, everyone really. I guess, right now, it's hard to believe an innocent baby could ever be so powerful, but my other self's memories tell me that he is - and I'm sure Chris can confirm that."

Chris nodded bleakly when all eyes turned to him for an answer. "Dad's right. I mean you guys kick ass, but Wyatt - the way he is in the future – he's close to being invincible."

"So just because Wyatt can subdue Alcathan doesn't automatically mean that you can," Leo told them, "Even with Prue here to help."

"But we can't sit on our hands and do nothing," Phoebe insisted.

"I know that, but I think you need to take a step back and avoid acting impulsively. This is a war, Phoebe. Alcathan has been planning it for centuries now. You're not going to find a way to overcome him in the space of a day, however much you might want to."

"So what do you suggest then?" Piper asked.

"Well, for a start – I think I should go and consult with the other Elders. My knowledge of Alcathan is limited, but there are those who have spent decades studying him. They'll know better how to act."

"Wait," Piper interrupted. "Are you saying that we should let the Elders decide what to do?"

Her husband nodded. "This is a battle that you and your sisters can't fight alone, Piper. I know you've had your differences with us in the past, but right now, we're your greatest allies. You have to let us do our job."

"But Wyatt is our son!" Piper exclaimed. "And stop talking like you're one of them."

"I am one of them," Leo reminded her. "But," he added with emphasis. "I'm also a father and you know I wouldn't do anything to put our boys in danger. I honestly believe that the Elders can help us with this. Just give them a chance, okay? If you don't like what they come up with, then fair enough, but at least ask them for advice."

"All right," Piper agreed, albeit reluctantly. "Go and talk to your Elder buddies and see what they have to say."

Leo nodded and rose to his feet. "I could be a while," he said. "And I'll warn you now - it's unlikely that you'll get an instant answer from them. Alcathan returning is a huge deal. It could take weeks, maybe even months of debate before the Elders decide what to do."

"But Wyatt doesn't have that long!" Piper protested.

"Yes he does," Leo disagreed. "According to my future self, Alcathan made his move just before Wyatt's second birthday and that's still over a year away yet. I know you want this to be over as soon as possible, but we'll have a greater chance of success if we don't rush into things. My other self warned you that you might have to think more strategically. You need to trust his judgement on that."

"Well, there's no way I'm sitting around with my feet up," Paige declared stridently. "I don't care what you say."

"I wouldn't expect you to, Paige," Leo assured her. "I think you girls should continue with the reconnaissance work in the mean time. Knowledge is leverage, and we're lacking in both at present. Go over what we saw today and draw up a list of things that you think we should investigate. We'll have to try to stay under the radar though - our only advantage right now is that Alcathan doesn't know that we know about him. It's important that we keep it that way."

"He has a point," Prue said to her sisters, who nodded in reluctant agreement, not used to fighting their battles in this subversive fashion, but seeing the logic to it nonetheless.

"I'll probably be away for a couple of days," Leo said, bending to kiss his wife farewell. "Take care and you…" He pointed at his youngest son. "Stay out of trouble while I'm gone."

"He never used to be this 'take chargey', right?" Phoebe said after he had orbed out.

"Leo has a higher responsibility now," Patty reminded her daughter.

"And he has my other Dad's memories," Chris added. "That changes things too."

"All right," Penny said briskly, her peremptory tone making them all sit up and pay attention. "I think it's time to reverse the spell on Melinda's amulet. Your mother, sister and I ought to be getting home. There's nothing more we can do here. It's down to you girls now."

"Actually Grams, I think I might stick around for a bit longer," Prue said.

"You shouldn't be here at all," Penny said reprovingly.

"But I am," Prue replied calmly, "And I don't think I would have been able to cross over if there wasn't a reason for me to be here."

"Despite my nephew's cunning little subterfuge," she added with a conspiratorial wink at Chris. "I'm around to help in the future, right?" she asked of him.

"No!" Piper cut in sharply before her son could reply. "Leo said summoning you would be safe, but only if no one revealed too much about the future to you. I love you, Prue, but I will not let you jeopardise my son's life just to satisfy your curiosity."

"Piper!" Prue said, shocked by the inference. "He's my nephew. You know I would never do anything to hurt him. I can't see the harm in him confirming what I already know though."

"And what do you already know?" Piper asked.

"That I'm supposed to save Chris from something some time in the future. I don't know what, when or how, but I know that if I don't, something that has to occur won't. I also know that if I succeed, it will change me in some way."

"What way?" Phoebe asked.

Prue shrugged. "I don't know. At first, I thought they meant that I would become a whitelighter, but now I'm not so sure."

"Do you know?" Phoebe enquired of her nephew.

"Chris – don't answer that," Piper cut in sharply.

"Mom, it's all right," he said soothingly, but his mother was having none of it.

"No, it is not all right. I only agreed to this if everyone kept their mouths shut."

"I'm not going to tell Aunt Prue anything more than what she's already guessed, I swear," Chris assured her. "I don't have a death wish, you know."

"And I promise I won't ask for any extra details, Piper," Prue vowed to her sister.

Still a little unsure, Piper looked between them before she eventually – and reluctantly - gave in to their persuasion. "All right, you can answer the question – but keep the answer vague, okay?"

Chris grinned. "No problem. I'm good at that," he quipped, making Piper smile despite her concern for his future wellbeing.

The witch-whitelighter glanced over at his Aunt then. "Yes, you are around more in the future - although not permanently," he told her cryptically. "And yes, you become more than the summoned soul that you are right now, but you're right, you're not a whitelighter. There – is that vague enough for everyone?"

"You know when I was alive? Did I ever tell you guys how much I hate riddles?" Prue remarked mournfully.

Chris laughed at his Aunt's chagrin. "Well, you did ask," he told her unsympathetically.

"You could at least try to pretend that you're not enjoying this," Prue remonstrated.

"What for?" Chris shot back with wide-eyed ingeniousness. "This is way too good an opportunity to miss."

Prue folded her arms across her chest and regarded him thoughtfully. "Why do I get the impression you're the bane of my afterlife?" she said.

Chris shrugged his shoulders. "Beats me," he said airily.

He then shot her a distinctly roguish grin, his green eyes sparkling with silent laughter, and Prue shook her head in indulgent exasperation.

"Spare me please!" she lamented with an exaggerated roll of her eyes.

An hour or so later, when the spell on the amulet had been reversed and Patty and Penny had returned to the afterlife, Chris and the remaining members of his family gathered in the conservatory to discuss what their next move should be.

"Right," Prue said, taking charge of the situation as if she'd never been gone. "Leo said we should think about what we found out from our glimpse into the future. So, other than the obvious, what else of use did we learn today?

"Nazcheck," Chris said.

"Alcathan's disciple guy?" Phoebe enquired. "What about him?"

"He was one of the darklighters being recruited yesterday," Chris explained. "I think I should try and find out more about him. He turned from Mr Sceptical to Mr Fanatical in a few years – there has to be a reason for that."

Prue nodded. "Okay - what else?"

"That Globe thingy Wyatt used to annihilate those demons?" Paige ventured hesitantly, still a bit uncomfortable with the different dynamics that having her eldest sister around had created.

"Itona's Globe? What about it?"

"Well, Future Leo said to think more long term, so maybe we should consider what happens if we can't stop Alcathan from getting to Wyatt. He said in the vision that Wyatt's soul was difficult to corrupt, so I think we should do everything in our power to make it even harder. It can't be a coincidence that the spell showed us that particular moment – it had to be a big turning point. If we can find the Globe and destroy it, maybe we can give Wyatt the strength to fight back."

"Makes sense," Prue agreed with an approving nod. "Okay – you and Phoebe look into that."

The topic of their conversation distracted them all with his whimpering cries for attention then, and Piper rose to her feet to go to see to him.

"I think it's someone's bedtime," she said as she lifted her son from his playpen and jigged him up and down in her arms to calm him. "We're done here, right?" she asked.

Hearing the beseeching undertone in her sister's voice, Prue nodded. "Yeah, I think so," she replied, "For the time being at least. It's been one hell of a day; I think we should all take some time out to relax, don't you?"

With a weary sigh, Piper turned and trudged up the stairs with Wyatt, her tired footsteps betraying the emotional toll the day's events had taken on her.

"Okay, so who's for pizza?" Phoebe said, breaking the slightly awkward silence that followed her departure. She looked over at Prue. "Do ghosts eat?"

"This one does," Prue said, rubbing her stomach for emphasis. "I would kill for pizza right now. I haven't eaten anything in years. Speaking of which – have you guys got any ice-cream?"

"Umm, I finished the last tub yesterday," Paige admitted apologetically. "I had a sudden craving for choc chip fudge brownie."

"Understandable," Prue said.

Paige got to her feet. "I'll go and get some more," she said. "Pizza isn't pizza without ice-cream to follow."

"Too true," Prue agreed solemnly, flashing her previously unknown sister a warm smile. Paige shyly returned it and then followed Phoebe out of the room.

After her two siblings had left, Prue glanced over at her nephew, who was staring blankly at the opposite wall, his face a mask of guilt and his green eyes shadowed with remorse.

"It's not your fault," she reassured him softly, quickly guessing the nature of his thoughts.

Chris sighed and closed his eyes. "I was supposed to keep my identity secret so no one would have to know the truth about Wyatt. I completely messed that one up, didn't I?"

"Your Mom is a strong woman, Chris," Prue told him. "She can handle it."

"But she shouldn't have to!"

"And neither should you!" Prue returned. "Given a choice, I'm sure Piper would sooner know the truth about you than not. Imagine how she'd feel in fifteen/sixteen year's time when her second child grew up into you if you never revealed your identity while you were here."

Chris looked down at his hands. "I guess I hadn't thought of that."

"Obviously."

There was a short silence and then Chris turned to look questionably at his Aunt. "How come you already know about me?" he asked with a puzzled frown. "Technically I don't exist yet."

"The Elders take a peek into the future every now and again – they knew Piper and Leo were destined to have another child," Prue replied. "I didn't know it was you until Mom and Grams came back after their last visit though. Up until then all I knew was that I was supposed to save my future nephew or niece from something, and that it was extremely important that I did so."

"Because something that has to happen won't if you fail."

Prue nodded. "Exactly. The Elders believe that Destiny has its own path," she explained, "But that the choices we make can affect the direction of it. They believe that the 'signs' they get from their glimpses into the future are Destiny's way of telling them when things are straying too far from the chosen path. And, more importantly, what needs to be done to get things back on track."

"Makes sense I suppose – although I can't imagine why saving me is so important."

Prue smiled. "I would say because of this," she answered. "You travelling back in time to warn of the threat to Wyatt I mean. Someone has to stop history from repeating itself."

"So what? I'm like a cosmic band-aid?"

Prue laughed. "Something like that I guess."

"If that's the case, then why is it necessary for you to save me this time around then?"

"Please don't ask me that," his Aunt complained. "My brain hurts just thinking about trying to fathom that one out. For simplicity's sake, let's just say it's because you've earned the right to see the future that Destiny originally intended, shall we?"

"And the fact that this family could never be complete without you of course," she added after a beat.

Chris coloured at that. "Now I know you're just being facetious," he remarked glibly to cover his embarrassingly emotional reaction.

"And I was wondering where you got that from," Prue countered with a broad smile.

Standing up, she reached over and affectionately ruffled his hair. "I'm looking forward to getting to know you, kid."

After Prue had left the room in search of her sisters, Chris settled back into the cushions of the wicker love-seat with a deep sigh. It was at times like these that he really missed the original incarnation of his father. Seeing his past played out like that in front of him had brought all the fear and pain of that time back with a vengeance, and he couldn't help wishing that he had his Dad around to talk to. He didn't think that this Leo – even with his other self's memories – could properly understand what it was like. And, even if he did, he wasn't yet comfortable enough with their relationship to confide in him voluntarily anyway.

Phoebe poked her head around the doorframe then, interrupting her nephew's melancholic musings. "I forgot to ask – what do you like on your pizza?"

"Ham, green peppers and mushrooms," Chris replied, "But no olives – they make me heave."

Phoebe nodded. "Okay – got it," she said, disappearing back into the kitchen to finish placing their order. Afterwards, she rejoined him in the conservatory.

"Are you all right?" she asked as she sat down beside him.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine."

"It must have been difficult for you to see all of that today."

"I think it was difficult for everyone."

"Yes, but you were the one who experienced it firsthand."

Chris nodded, forcibly swallowing the painful lump that had risen in his throat. "I'm okay – honestly," he said, his voice breaking as he spoke and invalidating his words.

"You should talk to him, you know," Phoebe went on.

"Who?"

"Leo."

"I don't…"

"Your Dad asked me to make sure you didn't internalise things after he was gone," Phoebe interrupted. "He said you might be a bit reticent out of some misplaced need to protect us."

"My…my Dad asked you?" Chris queried, more than a little confused by this pronouncement.

"Yes – in the letter he left for me," Phoebe replied. "He said he could rely on me to be persistent to the point of annoyance, which, I have to say, I'm not entirely sure was meant as a compliment."

She shot her nephew a small smile before continuing. "I'm prepared to let him off the hook though;" she went on, "Seeing as he said some other, much nicer things about me to make up for it."

Chris shook his head in disbelief. "I can't believe he left you tips on how to manipulate me," he said ruefully.

Phoebe laughed. "He's your father – what do you expect? Seriously though – he gave our Leo his memories for a reason. He wanted you to have someone to confide in. There's nothing wrong with that, is there?"

"No, no, I guess not," Chris said quietly, blinking back the involuntary tears that sprang to his eyes.

Phoebe reached over and gently squeezed his hands. "Just talk to Leo when he gets back from 'up there', okay?"

"Okay," Chris agreed.

Phoebe nodded in satisfaction. "Good."

A tinkling orb sound announced the return of Paige then, and they both looked up as she called out to them from the kitchen.

"Hey guys – I could use some help in here. I got chips and dips too – thought we might as well turn this into a complete junk food fest."

"Come on," Phoebe said, urging her nephew to his feet. "The pizza'll be here soon and you know your Mom's never gonna let us eat it out of the box in the living room. She'll expect plates and cutlery at the very least."

OOOOOO

"Hey! Can I come in?"

Prue tapped lightly on the doorframe, prompting her sister to look up from her rapt contemplation of her son's face. The dark-haired witch was sitting in the rocking chair by the cot, her baby boy cradled protectively in her arms.

Piper smiled. "Sure," she said, beckoning her elder sister in.

Prue crossed the room and perched on the arm of the chair. "Are you okay?" she asked, reaching out to gently stroke her sister's hair with her fingers.

"Define okay," Piper responded, returning her gaze to Wyatt's chubby features. She sighed, "I'm a Mom, Prue."

Prue smiled. "Yeah, so I see," she said softly, leaning over and lightly touching her tiny nephew's chubby cheek. "He really is beautiful, Piper. And Chris, well, he's a credit to you too."

"And yet, I failed to protect either of them from the horrors of this world," Piper said sorrowfully. "I left them when they needed me the most."

"That was hardly your fault, Piper."

"I wish I could believe that, Prue, I really do. You have no idea what it's like to see your child so power hungry and horribly unpleasant to the people who love him the most. And Chris… God. Seeing him like that, knowing how he suffered over my death and because of what his brother did to him, that's even worse than what happened to Wyatt somehow."

Prue pressed a kiss to the top of her sister's bent head. "But he got through it, Piper - because of the strength that you gave him. He loves you, anybody can see that."

With a wistful sigh, Piper raised her gaze to her sister's face. "I missed you, Prue," she confessed.

"I missed you too, but something tells me that we're going to be seeing a lot more of each other in the future."

"Well good – maybe I'll get a break from having to be the responsible one all the time. Hopefully, I'll be able to spend some quality time with my boys instead."

"Being the eldest sister sucks sometimes, huh?"

Piper nodded. "Tell me about it. I don't know how you did it."

"I gritted my teeth frequently," Prue returned teasingly, making her sister smile despite her heavy heart.

"It'll give you a chance to get to know Paige properly as well," Piper went on.

"She seems to have her head screwed on straight," Prue remarked.

"Meaning that Phoebe doesn't?" Piper enquired artfully.

Prue laughed at her younger sibling's playful jest. "That wasn't what I meant," she protested.

Piper's expression sobered again. "She's grown up a lot you know - Phoebe I mean. She's had to, what with losing you and everything that happened with Cole. Her job at the newspaper has given her more direction as well. She's not the baby of the family any more."

"No – it seems two recent additions have taken over that particular role," Prue replied.

Getting to her feet, Piper laid a sleeping Wyatt in his cot and tucked his blanket around him, propping his teddy bear up at the end of the crib once he was comfortably settled. She looked down on him for a moment and then, all of a sudden, her composure broke.

"I'm scared, Prue," she confessed tearfully. "What if we can't stop Alcathan? What if…"

"We will," Prue said firmly, coming up alongside her and slipping an arm across her shoulders. With a dry sob, Piper turned into the offered embrace and finally let her emotions overflow.

"Your boys are going to grow up happy and healthy, I promise," Prue said in a soothing tone, rubbing her hand in comforting circles over her crying sister's back. "You have to start believing that."

Piper nodded. "I'll try," she said brokenly. "I'll try."

"Hey guys! Pizza's up!" Phoebe's voice echoed up the stairs cutting through the emotion-filled moment.

Piper pulled away, wiping her eyes. "You go," she said. "I need a minute to compose myself. I don't want Chris to see me like this. He'll only feel responsible for something that's not his fault."

Prue nodded in agreement, having already witnessed her nephew's tendency towards self-recrimination where his mother was concerned. "All right – are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine. Go – I'll be down in a minute."

Piper watched Prue leave and then turned back to the cradle, looking down on her sleeping son.

"Mommy's not going to let anything happen to you or your little brother, okay?" she said tenderly, brushing a curly lock of his blond hair off his forehead. "That future is not going to happen. Ever. I don't care what I have to do to stop it."

OOOOOO

Two weeks later…

"No – too early," Chris groaned in annoyance as a shrill beep-beeping noise reverberated around inside his skull like a pneumatic drill.

Reaching out a hand, he muted the alarm and turned over onto his back as the last vestiges of sleep melted away. Trying to shut out the awful pounding in his head, he closed his eyes again, his mind rewinding over the events of the last couple of weeks.

His Aunt Prue had stayed around for six days before finally returning to the afterlife with strict instructions to summon her if they needed her help again, and Chris found that he missed her company after she had gone. The two of them had always shared a close relationship, partly because she'd saved his life as a child, but also because they had inherited the same Charmed power. He was pleased to discover that that connection already existed between them, despite the fact that he hadn't been born yet. It was a comfort to know that there were things in his life that would remain the same whichever timeline he was in.

As Leo had predicted, the Elders were taking their time to decide how best to approach the thorny dilemma of Alcathan's return, and had instructed the girls to continue with their information gathering while they debated the issue.While Chris shared his mother's growing impatience with this state of affairs, he also understood why it was necessary to be sure of their plan of action before going on the offensive too.

He had lived under his brother's oppressive regime in the future, you see - the foundations of which had been put into place by Alcathan - and therefore knew better than anyone why they couldn't afford to be complacent about their enemy's determination to achieve his endgame. Wyatt's dominion was absolute and the various means by which he kept his tyranny under control were frighteningly effective. Alcathan was not an opponent to be taken lightly therefore.

As for the progress of his own investigations, Chris had spent the previous evening in an underground demon bar, swapping fake whitelighter assassination stories with the bottle-blond darklighter, Nazcheck, while simultaneously trying to resist the urge to shoot the murderous son of a bitch through the heart with his stolen bow and arrow.

After several such encounters, he was beginning to understand why Nazcheck had ended up being such a fanatical supporter of Alcathan's rule despite his initial scepticism. The darklighter seemed to take sadistic pleasure in the pain he inflicted on his victims and, more often than not, deliberately prolonged their suffering by shooting them in a place where the poison would take the longest to take effect. He also had psychological torture down to a fine art and thought nothing of forcing his victim's charges to watch helplessly while their whitelighter's life ebbed away in front of them.

Opening his eyes again, Chris massaged his temples with his fingertips, trying to will away the pounding headache that was getting worse by the second. He didn't understand it; he couldn't possibly have a hangover. He'd only feigned drinking the beer at the bar last night, needing to keep his wits about him to avoid blowing his cover. Deciding a shower would help to clear his fuzzy head, he pushed back the covers, swung his legs over the side of the bed, and rose to his feet in one smooth, unbroken move – an action that he ended up regretting a split second later.

A wave of dizziness washed over him almost immediately and his legs buckled, seemingly unable to bear his weight. Unable to recover his equilibrium, he fell heavily against the cabinet next to the bed, knocking over the lamp and picture frame as he put his hand out to break his fall. The items crashed to the floor, shattering on impact, and Chris cried out in pain when the resulting shards of glass and broken pottery cut into his flesh as he slumped to the floor shortly afterwards.

As the edges of his vision blurred, he was vaguely aware of the sound of running feet, the door crashing open and someone frantically calling his name. The last thing he heard before he slipped into unconsciousness was his mother's panic-stricken voice.

"LEO! Get down here NOW!"

To be continued…

P.S. I know that was another evil cliffhanger, but I promise I won't keep you waiting so long for an update this time. I already have the first few pages of the next chapter written.