Eternal Flame
part 10
"I don't trust him."
"How did I know you were going to say that?"
"Phoebe, he attacked me out of nowhere. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but that's not really the kind of thing he should've been doing if he wanted to make a friend," Cole Turner offered, throwing her a gaze, as he bent to calmly examine the hieroglypics slated across the rock wall in surprisingly perfect formation, faded only slightly from years past.
"So what do you think she is?"
"I'm sorry?"
"Chloe?" she emphasized, rather impatiently. "Look, Merrick was pretty vague, I'll give you that. But what if what he said was more or less accurate?"
"Accurate...meaning?"
"That she has the power of a Charmed One. Grams would say it was impossible, and so would mom. We don't have another sister out there, and frankly it's just getting way too creepy to make sense of." She paused a moment. "I want to know what she is."
"And this wouldn't have anything to do with the jealousy you still have pending towards her?" He laughed softly. "But he's right, you know. You really don't have to be a witch to save the world. Hell, I'm a reformed ex-demon who's now a mortal with powers, and I'm making out just fine."
"How is that?"
"Well, if it weren't for me, Stephen Sterling would have claimed you as his love slave, and you would have bore him children."
She reached out to hit him, as he playfully took her hands in his, gently pressing her slender frame up against the wall, her giggles trailing along his ear rather faintly. "The only man I want...ever want...to have my children with, is you," she breathed.
"Well, in that case, I'm still entirely flattered."
"Damn you, Cole Turner. If we didn't have to head back this soon, I think I might just decided to repay you for that pumpkin yet."
"Is that a threat, Mrs. Turner?"
"Oh, you bet it is."
He carefully placed a small kiss on the tip of her nose, as his arms encircled her small waist rather carefully. "Only...now I'll actually be expecting a pumpkin, so it'll have to be something a lot more inventive."
"Well, if it isn't the two lovebirds, trying to find their own cage," a voice cooed behind them, as Nicholas Merrick calmly lit a cigarette, blowing the smoke absentmindedly into the air, as he shot them a brief smirk. Carefully batting a few flakes of ash to the ground below, he crossed one foot over the other, his expression fairly amused.
"Where's your robe?" Cole asked him, his face suddenly falling into a deep frown, as a trace of annoyance crossed his handsome profile.
"In the trash. Hey, I'm working for you guys now, remember?"
"Well, see, it might help if we were actually hiring," Phoebe quipped.
"Look, would you mind putting that thing out? My wife and I don't smoke, and it's certainly not doing anything for your health either."
"Yeah, and we're not exactly venturing into your territory, are we? This is sacred space."
"Really?"
"It belonged to some ruler chick who was apparently way in over her head- didn't last too long. But...just so we're clear, there's no body, and if I were you, I wouldn't go looking for one either."
"You talk like you're some kind of brave warrior with a thousand battles under your belt," Phoebe added, scrunching up her nose.
"Well, Miss Halliwell, we all have our gifts. Mine just happens to be a little more complex than most."
"Yeah, and talk about invading someone's privacy," she muttered nonchalantly, rolling her eyes.
"Anyway, that's not why I- we should really get some things straight here. I....mean, if we're still going to join forces and all that crap?"
"Get what straight?" Cole responded shrugging. "I thought we had an understanding. You don't try and kill me again, and I won't try and bury you ten feet below the rubble. Was that too vague for you, Merrick?"
"Vague," the other man mulled over. "That's...funny, isn't it? I mean, you're well over a hundred in demon years, Turner. I think I would sum that up as pretty vague, considering your pretty little wife has no idea what you've done in those hundred years. Does she?"
"What are you talking about?"
"When I said I wanted to kill you, I wasn't making a mistake," he reminded him. "I knew of exactly what you did, and when you did it."
"Is that right? You...think you know me better than I know myself, is that it?"
"Well, that depends. Do you make confessions on a daily basis, or do you usually just wait until she finds out the truth too late?"
"What does this have to do with the curse?" Phoebe spoke up, crossing her arms over her chest. "Because if you've got a valid point, make it. If not, I suggest that this is a a place where you'd be better off minding your own business."
"And how can you still will yourself to see past the monster he is?"
"He's a man. A monster kills people for the sake of getting some enjoyment out of it. A man is someone who believes in himself with all the good he's done and will continue to do. In case you aren't aware, Nick, there's a big difference."
"Oh. Yeah. Right. Hey...whatever you say, alright? I mean, hell, what do I know?"
"Yes," she breathed, her voice rising an octave. "What do you know? As far as we're concerned, you still have motives."
"That poor little blonde out there. She's only just starting to believe she's something special, and what she may find out, may just destroy everything you've worked so hard to accomplish."
"Are you saying I-"
"Turner, I'm not implying anything. I have the facts, and I'm presenting them to you for your advantage- to learn the story before it kills you."
"What story?" Cole asked, as his blues slowly narrowed, his feet taking a long step forward, until he'd nearly confronted his opponent head on, his hands struggling in and out of tight fists. "I haven't killed anybody in over-"
"But that's not the moral of this life lesson," he chimed cheerfully, as he gestured to the ex demon, his shoe quietly closing itself over the fallen cigarette that had been released from his fingertips.
"Life lesson," Phoebe whispered, as she studied him, her eyes suddenly finding the ground, as she focused them lightly over the faded bout of smoke.
"Chloe Franklin was adopted," Nicholas uttered, pursing his lips. "She came from a pretty rough life, and managed to make a name for herself. A...little like in the way you have, except she actually had to fight the forces of good with good to obtain her place in society. Very strong-willed woman...in fact, she still is. Thanks to you, of course."
"What the hell have I got to do with her being-"
"Oh...well, nothing. At least, not after that. But prior to her being moved around constantly to God knows where, she once had two very loving parents who would have given the world to her."
"Merrick-"
"Her father was a warlock, and her mother was a witch. Quite an uncommon match, though not necessarily so in modern times, no? They were everything a little girl could've asked for...hoped for...dreamed for..."
"Something happened to them," Phoebe continued. "Something bad."
"Well, in a manner of speaking, bad is an understatement. They were viciously murdered by an infamous monster. One who still took the pleasure of serving the Source, and could have been his right hand man. You know...I think you two might know him. Well...can't really do much now, since he's dead, gone, and vanquished by the lovely Emma, but whose to say that man is rid of that monster, hmm? Whose to say he still has any real good left in him at all? Afterall, he took the one thing that little girl was living for, and shattered her entire life to pieces. Now miss high and mighty Egyptian queen comes looking for him, and he's got nohing to show for it. He's still a bad ass, but he can't bring the evil out to play since he confronted it for old times sake, a little over a year ago on the Crimson Star."
"She sent you, didn't she?"
"Would I still be here, if she did? No...I guess the more important question is, would I still be here if you had been allowed to do me any harm? Because contrary to-"
But he never got the time to finish. Cole angrily shoved him into the nearby wall, his hands tightly consuming the collar of his shirt, his fingernails digging deeply into the worn fabric, as he uttered a low growl in his throat. "And I don't think I like the idea of someone telling me what I did and didn't do in my own past."
"You killed them," he hissed. "And your conscience knows that, Turner."
"It was an assignment," Cole told him, trying to keep his voice fairly calm, as he let up slightly on his grip, his eyes saddening, as he winced briefly, his blues threatening to let the tears come, as he fought to regain his composure. "And whatever I was assigned back then, I did it...no questions asked. You can dispute my motives for as long as you want- I wouldn't have remembered committing the act to begin with, just as I had no idea why Emma held such a grudge for as long as she did. She was staring right into the face of madness, Nick, and she didn't say a damn thing."
"Because she didn't recognize you. Not in your human form..."
"And I would given everything I had to bring him back for her. Everything I had. But you know what? That was only half of who I was. And this other part of me? The part that genuinely loves and feels, and really cares about the people he helps? He's here to make sure that never happens again. I could control Belthazor after I-"
"After you met Phoebe. But before that? Hell, you might as well let every demonic entity out there get away with crimes equal to yours. If you would have let me take your soul, I would see to it that I did it some real justice. I would see to it that-"
"That I'm wrong for what I did? How does that compensate for all the good I've done?"
"You have a little girl of your own now," Nicholas mused. "Would you let some monster destroy her too? Would you let them scar her for life, if some beast went ahead and cut off your wife's air supply, and slit her throat? Would you let it happen?"
"My little girl thinks I'm nothing short of magic," Cole whispered. "She loves me."
"And she knows what you are, doesn't she?"
"Then I guess she's the bigger person here, because she's managed to surpass that."
"You have to tell her, you know. You have to tell her the-"
"Ally?"
Nicholas chuckled slightly, shaking his head, as he tried to free himself of Cole's hold, groaning tirelessly. "Chloe."
"And that isn't fair," Phoebe told him. "You can't expect her to feel a hatred for Belthazor that was over long ago. It's isn't possible. Cole is the man, Belthazor-"
"Yeah, as you keep drilling into my head, I may add," Nicholas drawled rather lazily. "Whatever. The bottom line here? He did share that body, and two people did die. You can't just hope to right that, especially when she witnessed the entire thing."
"What?" Cole breathed.
"I said she witnessed it, man. She knows your other face."
"Then why hasn't she-"
"Because before this, she really did have no clue that demons actually existed. It was just another fictional realm to her. She was raised on traditional values....just like any normal child."
"So her parents kept it from her all that time...never knowing what she was...they took away that right..."
"Yeah, and now Chloe and the two Charmed Ones? Well...to put it bluntly- they are going to have to kick your ass to prevent you from destroying the world. All in all, I think it's time to face the cold hard fact, don't you?"
**********
"Do you see him?"
"No, Your Grace, but it's only been a few hours. Give it time."
"Xavier, have you ever truly been in love? Even once in your life?"
"I had a family once," he noted, without meeting her gaze, his hand tapping itself listlessly against the roughness of the high-backed chair, his lips creeping into an unusual smile.
"That's love to you? Family?"
"What other definition might you have, Your Grace?"
"The love of another being- the companionship that divides us."
"Well then, no. I can honestly say I have never felt it before in my life. But then again, we've been through this before, Celia."
"Do you fancy me, Xavier?"
"Fancy you?"
"Do you find me attractive?"
"I'm afraid it's beyond my duty to say so," he observed, his gaze touching upon hers like stone.
"But if you were entitled to voice your right, what would you say?"
"Wosret knows nothing of love, and neither do you."
"Can't say I didn't expect that," she muttered, placing a perfectly manicured fingernail to her lips. "So why do we continue to wait, Xavier? Wosret waits for no one, and his body suffers."
"You know, you may want to actually exhibit some kind of feeling if you intend to place Wosret's spirit into the young man's body."
"I will completely feel when Wosret finds this plane again."
"Do you really think he will alter your perception entirely? You are still fooled by the petty thoughts you still hold."
"A night of passion can change a lifetime."
"In storybooks, Celia. Not real life. Maybe if you learned to tell the difference-"
"And what of you? Waiting terribly long to seek him out, aren't we?"
"Wosret is too self centered for you, Your Grace. He bears no soul on the outside, let alone in. It may just be a mistake to let chaos have its day. Though, as always, I leave that entirely up to you."
"Well aren't you just the ongoing skeptic."
"Miss Celia, your guests have arrived," a small voice belted at the entrance as loud as they could. The short man hesitantly peeked around the corner, carefully placing his right foot beside the other. "I believe they wish your presence, Your Grace."
"My presence? At this hour? Who did I send for?"
"You do not remember?"
"Not in the slightest. Speak."
"You requested their resurrection. The Underworld was not ready to comply, so we traded one of our own in return for their lives."
"There are more than one of them?"
"There are three. The three we have gained, were present when Cole Turner brought them to their untimely deaths. They demand a choice of revenge."
"The Triad," Celia whispered, clasping her hands together gleefully. "Well, bring them in, you imbecile. Certainly wouldn't want to keep them waiting, as I'm sure they've done enough of that to last an eternity."
"As you wish."
"The...Triad, Your Grace?"
"They were Belthazor's way in to The Charmed Ones, yes?"
"Well, that's correct, but you misunderstand their implication-"
"Xavier, I'm doing my job, and it's about damn time you did yours."
"But what about the woman, Celia? We've discovered she works for good. How is that helpful to pure, undying evil? It does nothing but hinder everything further. Your stakes are too high, and I'd advise you to turn back now."
"Yes, but you're not my advisor, are you?"
"What you're going to create, will shed no light on forgiveness."
"And you're just as deep in this, Xavier. You can't-"
"You'll get yourself killed. The curse will kill you."
"And that's recent news?"
"You're messing with an entire legion of evil now. Do you really think the Triad is just going to do something for nothing? They gave Belthazor that assignment with a plan in mind. A plan that led straight back to the Source himself."
"Loosen up a little, would you?"
"Celia, you call them in here, and it will be your mummified corpse they'll find in that tomb."
"Really?"
"I don't lie. You wanted Turner here, and now he's here. There is no need to meddle with outside magic to make your spell complete. I thought you were smarter than that."
"You thought I was- oh Xavier, you really are a regular old fashioned guy, aren't you?"
"I'm a demon, Your Grace. Hardly what one could and would deem a man."
"Silly me, I can't quite place the distinction."
"Besides, we've already got a new player in town. Forget the woman. Mr. Merrick's already seen to it that he's helping them out as much as humanly possible."
"Merrick? No kidding."
"You're-"
"I had a brief meeting with that boy. Not too bright, though he could tell me exactly what I was thinking. I could have killed him right then and there on the spot. Worthless cause to a worthless empath. Isn't that how it usually goes? He's nothing more than a fallen has been. Do not waste your time."
"You don't fear him?"
"He's our other key into the world of The Charmed Ones, you idiot."
"He won't come back here, Your Grace. Now that he has seen what you are-"
"No. But they will."
"Ancient Egypt truly baffles me," he muttered. "Even after many years of loss, torment, and grief, you people are still making the wrong choices to your civilization."
"Our civilization?"
"Celia, it's been forever, has it not?" a deep voice interrupted, as she slowly turned her head back towards the entrance, her face a mask of complete joy upon the arrival. "We have a lot to talk about."
"Yes, and you may start with Cole Turner," she proclaimed softly. "I want to now every little thing there is to know about him."