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Stories posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
A New Covenant - 8. The Wastelands
Chapter 8: The Wastelands
This Chapter is from Wyatt’s POV
I orbed into the wastelands, keeping to the high grounds. The Beast might’ve been vanquished by Cole, but there might still be more things lurking. No one from our family had ever come here after my aunt Phoebe came to get closure after Cole’s first death.
“COLE!! COLE!!!” I looked around hoping to see him, hoping that maybe he’d know of a way to get David back; this was a last resort, the last toy in the grab-bag.
“Wyatt Matthew Halliwell, well I must say you are a sight to behold. And what brings the Twice Blessed Child to the wastelands? Did you come to see me? Maybe free me?” I turned and saw Cole standing behind me; he was a shadow of the man I’d seen in pictures. His smile had no mirth to it, his body was wasting away, and his eyes had no shine, no life.
“Cole, I didn’t come here to play the witty banter with you. I need your help, and as much as it pains me to say it, you may be the only one who has an answer, so don’t make this any harder than it has to be, because I have no qualms about killing you…or what is left of you anyway.” I stepped towards him and he backed one step.
“Listen, don’t get too carried away, you might have the powers, but I have the knowledge, and experience, I don’t need powers to outsmart you, after all you are nothing more than just a pup.” He stepped up towards me. I held my ground, staring into his once luminescent brown eyes.
“Cole, you don’t understand, I’m not here to make nice with you, I couldn’t care less if you’re still peeved because my aunt stopped loving you. So you got two choices, you help me, or I kill you, your choice”
**Cole’s POV**
I had picked the right time to learn spells, if I could steal Wyatt’s magic, I could release myself from this hellhole, all I needed to do was make sure he couldn’t use them against me. I twirled the string over and over as I spoke with Wyatt, focusing on him, on his essence, his magic. It would bind all his powers, except for orbing, that was something I had not yet found a way of interfering with. I would have my chance to go at him, in my turf, on my terms.
**Third Person**
Cole launches a punch at Wyatt’s face, but Wyatt is quicker and sidesteps it.
Wyatt retaliates with a sidekick connecting on Cole’s ribs, Cole is sent flying across the plateau on which they are standing, landing two inches from its edge. Below, in the ground, a serpentine looking thing moves, awaiting the kill, awaiting one of the contenders to fall on the ground, where it can strike. Cole gets up and smiles at Wyatt, wiping blood off of his mouth.
“Well, well, I see Phoebe has had a hand in your training, too bad I had a hand in hers.” he runs at Wyatt, Wyatt flips over Cole’s back and back kicks Cole’s butt, overbalancing him, and sending him to the ground of the plateau, inches from its edge. The thing below moves yet again.
“Cole, let’s not do this, I’m wasting my time, and you’re the cause, I don’t want to fight you, I just want to know if there is anything you can tell me about how to get my brother back, that’s all.” Wyatt looks at Cole, hoping the older man sees the truth in his statement, willing Cole to stop fighting and simply help him.
Cole gets up, sneers at Wyatt and runs at him again. Wyatt flips over Cole’s back once more, but this time, Cole stops and as Wyatt lands, he kicks his legs out from under him. Wyatt lands with a thud on the plateau’s floor, the wind knocked out of him, Cole jumps on top of him, and punches Wyatt’s face, Wyatt tries to put up his shield, but nothing happens.
“No baby boy, that won’t work. See, I’ve had lots-a time to prepare for any witch that came here, mistakenly or otherwise…I’ve been trapped here for almost 19 years, it’s a hell of a lotta time for preparing. I even learned how to bind powers from a little witch that I captured and tortured…you see I don’t wanna go back to make Phoebe fall in love with me, I wanna go back so I can kill her and her wretched sisters…”
Wyatt took advantage of Cole’s speech to land a front kick right on Cole’s face, Cole flies backwards, and this time he lands out of the plateau, hitting the ground with a bone breaking crunch. The thing underneath moved, a tentacle black as night with blood red, canary yellow, and dynasty blue markings shot out of the earth, straight towards the sky, then with deadly force it shot to the spot where Cole lay, still unmoving.
Wyatt saw the tentacle and jumped down, landing with a soft thud next to Cole, the tentacle began its high-speed descent, Wyatt hefted Cole and ran towards another plateau, the thing following close behind.
“Damn it Cole…WAKE UP!!” Wyatt slapped Cole, hoping it would wake him, but nothing happened. He looked around, the thing still moved around beneath the surface of the ground, waiting. Wanting. Yearning.
There was nothing but desolation in the wastelands. The sky was filled with thunder and colored almost pink, almost orange, the ground was dry and unforgiving, and for some reason outside his understanding, Wyatt could feel heat emanating from everywhere. He looked over the endless immensity that was the wastelands, and for the first time, Wyatt Matthew Halliwell, Twice Blessed Child, first son of the Charmed Line, and Heir to Camelot, felt powerless, vulnerable, and alone.
Cole began to stir behind Wyatt, his eyelids fluttering, his fingers twitching, he had fallen on the ground outside the plateau, meaning the thing, the new Beast, would come and consume him, he had to move or he’d be nothing more than a snack. He sat bolt upright, and looked around, Wyatt stood in front of him looking out over the Wastelands, over what he’d been forced to call home for over a decade. That young man who seemed so full of life, of passion, and who even now refused to give up reminded Cole of a younger him, of a rampant Belthazor running wild in the Underworld, of a young Cole flirting with young men and women alike. Wyatt’s life-force was strong, it was untamed, and yet it was somehow repressed. Cole saw the string still twirled around his index finger.
There was so much he wanted to do, so much he’d planned for years. But Wyatt had a destiny that rivaled so many, that kept so many safe and secure, one that even the Elders had been frightened by. Cole knew much more than he let on, he knew certain details that would make any of them gasp and faint. He took the beginning of the string and began to undo the binding spell, knowing this was his last minute. He would help Wyatt get David back, but then he’d attack him, and hopefully Wyatt would forget himself and end Cole’s suffering.
“I know of a place where no amount of healing, or summoning can bring back a person. If you’ve all tried everything, maybe that is where David is…Alaxio.” Cole hoped to pique Wyatt’s interest.
**Wyatt’s POV**
“Alaxio? As in the Archival Record that was created eons ago? Cole, don’t insult my intelligence that’s just a fairytale, one that David was…is very fond of.” I glared at the horizon, its sulfuric shine becoming hypnotizing; I tore my gaze away lest it pulled me in. I turned to look at Cole.
“Listen to me Wyatt, they tell you it’s a fairytale so that the magical community won’t go looking for it, trying to use it to tip the balance. Imagine, being able to walk the halls of the Alexandrian Library, reading the scrolls of the Anubian Records, having the knowledge of that one building at your disposal, you could bring the world to its knees. Then you have The Acropolis, in its prime, with a library filled with scroll upon scroll of the most magnificent prophecies, spells, and revelations the world has ever seen.” Cole gained a glow as he spoke of Alaxio, almost instantaneous, heart-breaking, because it showed a glimpse of who he’d been.
“And as much as all of that is important and whatever else it may be, it still doesn’t help me get my brother back. I have to go. Maybe I can find some answers elsewhere…will you give me back my powers, or do I have to fight you to get them back?” I glared at him hoping I wouldn’t have to do a repeat of ten minutes ago.
“I already did, but believe me Wyatt, David is trapped in Alaxio, and if he’s as smart as Phoebe he probably already found the spell and the potion that can get him out.” he looked at me with the weirdest expression “Now I have a favor to ask of you…will you kill me Wyatt?” I was shocked, Cole’s face hadn’t even flinched, he’d remained serious and in control through the whole thing.
“Cole, I can’t do that, for all intents and purposes you’re human, that’d be murder, and murder by magic is punishable by Stripping of Powers. I couldn’t do that anyway, not to you or anyone else.” Cole’s face was twisted in disappointment and regret.
“Figures, you’d be too weak to do it. I should’ve killed you when I had the chance”
**Third Person**
Cole ran at Wyatt, knocking him over. Cole put his knees on Wyatt’s upper arms, and began pummeling Wyatt’s face; Wyatt struggled under Cole’s weight, trying to force the older man’s body from his, but with his arms pinned down there was little he could do.
Wyatt lifted his right leg straight and managed to kick Cole’s head, causing Cole to overbalance and fall forward, over Wyatt’s head. Wyatt pushed up off the floor and used his legs to flip himself up, landing on his feet.
“Cole, this isn’t going to work. I’m not going to hurt you.” Wyatt looked at Cole, keeping his face still.
“Wyatt, I’m going to die, and whether or not you want to, you’re going to kill me, or I find a way to get out of here, and I’m going to kill you, and everyone you care about, you decide!!!!” Cole’s face was contorted in anger, desperation, and hatred, his eyes shone with a passion that rivaled anything Wyatt had before seen in anyone else.
Wyatt looked at Cole, knowing full well the damage he’d caused when he’d been alive, but also knowing that once he’d helped his mom and dad find each other when all odds were against them. He looked at his hand, then at Cole, and a tear ran down his face.
“Rest in Peace Cole…” Wyatt’s hand began to glow red, and a red projectile appeared in his hand, and then sped towards Cole.
“Thank you…” Cole was hit full on by Wyatt’s projectile, he burst into ashes.
**Wyatt’s POV**
I stared at the pile of ash that would’ve been Cole, it had been mercy, he’d spent too much time in the wastelands, and he deserved to move on. I looked out over the Wastelands one more time, and orbed to Magic School, hoping to find some answers there. I orbed into the Main Hall, the school seemed dark, and deserted, almost lifeless. Something felt off, like there should be something more to the school. I walked forward, keeping close to the doors like I’d been taught early on.
“Dad…Mrs. Thompson, Ms. Heinss, is anyone here?” There was no response, I opened one of the doors, and the classroom was empty.
I orbed into the library, my senses on the brink; my very molecules on edge.
“Dad…ANYONE!!!” there was a rustle by the main stacks, I looked towards it and saw a red-head “Mrs. Thompson, is that you?”
“Wyatt? Wyatt is that you…I mean really, really you? There’s a shape-shifter in the school, it’s one of the students but he’s gone off the deep-end, kind of like when Josh conjured up the Headless Horseman…what was the first thing I gave you a time-out for?”
I remembered that day clearly, it had seem so unfair back then… “I telekinetically put all the kids in the classroom on the ceiling so I could have all the toys to myself.”
“HA! Yea, that was one of the funniest things that ever happened in this school, class being held upside down…ah good old times.” Mrs. Thompson stepped out of the shadows and waved her hand over the room, most of the staff was there and even some students.
“Mrs. Thompson, why are all of you hiding? With so many witches here, why not cast a spell to make sure no one can shape shift, and then do a head-count, if there’s more than one of someone who doesn’t have a twin, then you have your shape shifter don’t you? Where’s my dad in all of this anyway?”
“He was called away, I believe he said it was your mom, some sort of family reunion, or emergency, it concerned your brother…Chris I believe he said.”
“I should head home then; they might need my help…”
“NO WYATT WAIT!!” I stopped mid-orb. Mrs. Thompson looked horrified. “Wyatt, you have to help us, I barely have enough power to keep us cloaked for long, and we really need your help.”
I didn’t know what to say, she was expecting so much, even though she’d said so little.
“I’ll do my best…let’s see…
Prudence, Patricia, Penelope, Melinda, Astrid, Helena, Laura and Grace
Halliwell witches stand strong beside me
Stop the shape shifter from changing its face.”
I looked around and there seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary. There were two more spells to this plan…or at least I hoped it was a plan.
“Let this people, quick as a sneeze,
Stop this thing and quickly freeze. Ok…now the last one.
For those who want the truth revealed
Opened hearts and secrets unsealed
From now until it's now again
After which the memory ends
Those who now are in this learning house
Will hear the truth from others mouths” I hoped that would work.
I looked at all the people in the room, one of them had created panic in what should be a peaceful place, a place that should be cherished and cared for, rather than feared. It was an old time problem at Magic School, students that felt cheated or ignored, left alone when they needed someone the most, and yet these same kids refused to ask for any help, refused to tell teachers and counselors alike what bothered them, what they needed and wanted.
“What was taken from the book. Break the spell, return what was took.” Granma Patty had been nine when she’d made up that spell, and even now none of us changed it, it worked, and like mom always said “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
The people inside the room unfroze, yet remained quiet. I looked at Mrs. Thompson, she was telepathic; so I told her what I’d done.
She looked gratefully at me, it felt odd that my teacher needed my help; that something could throw her for a loop so big that she seemed almost helpless, but she wasn’t, she could handle this, otherwise my dad wouldn’t have given her the post of vice-principal. I looked at her and she nodded. I looked around, and with a mental sigh I orbed to the manor.
I orbed into the kitchen to find mom and Chris looking at a slip of paper, mom was crying. I walked over, and mom exploded the table next to me. I stopped cold in my tracks as the table blew to pieces; I raised my arms to protect my face.
“Nice to see you too mom.”
“WYATT!! I’m sorry, we’re all just jumpy right now. Chris got attacked earlier on today, David’s still asleep…though not for long, hopefully…and we have cousins coming from the woodwork, it’s just VERY hectic here right now.”
I looked at Chris and could see the tell-tale dark circles under his eyes that meant he’d been tousled back and forth all day. His hair seemed lifeless, and his eyes had lost some of their shine. Mom’s hair was pulled back in a messy bun, her clothes seemed dirty, and hung on her like rags, her skin had a strange pallor, and her eyes were a bit opaque. I knew I must look something like them; I had been everywhere I wouldn’t think about being on a normal day. But today was different, mom had a hope for David coming back, and that made all of the craziness a little better.
“Mom, you said something about Dave not being asleep for too long, what did you mean?”
“Well, smart boy that your brother is, Chris used the ‘Astral projection Spell’ to get himself to David, since we couldn’t get him to us, and being smart like he is, David found a spell and a potion to get himself out…and Caleb as well, seems like Kira wasn’t any better off at healing than you, Chris, Paige or Leo. Caleb didn’t even flinch…I guess it was meant to be, but for now let’s focus on getting them out.”
Mom walked out of the kitchen towards the stairs, it didn’t take a genius to know she was headed for the attic, to make a potion, and call her sisters. It was time to wrap this whole week up, and put it so far behind us that even a spell wouldn’t bring it back.
We walked into the attic and found three people by the book, a girl with short red hair, a guy with shoulder length brown hair, and a girl with waist length blond hair. Their faces seemed to have a weird familiarity, but I knew that I had never met any of them before. The blonde girl had olive skin, sprinkled with freckles all around her nose and cheeks, her breast were firm and perky, her lips sensuous and inviting, her blouse hung low, almost revealing her bra and her skirt was short enough that if she leaned down anyone watching would get a show. Her pale brown eyes seemed to rake over everything they looked at, her hair was cut in flowing layers that draped across her back and swayed with her every step.
The redhead was a bit shorter, but curvier, her hips stuck outwards from her body, her waist synched in and her breasts stuck out, a perfect hourglass, her skin was sprinkled with freckles too, but they were much more noticeable because of her pale skin. Her hair was close cut to her face, with sweeping bangs that barely touched her eyebrows, her deep blue eyes stood out against her hair and skin, making her an eerie beauty. I looked at the guy, and could tell he was a knock-out with the girls…or boys…or both. I saw grams standing next to him, and grandma patty sitting by the window, and immediately knew that something heavily magical was going to happen in this attic.
“WYATT!!! Heavens, where have you been? Gone for two days and you don’t even have an explanation, I think you should apologize to your mother, and brother, worried sick, heavens knows what might have happened; I tell you, kids today! Patty never did something so horrendous, two whole days and not even a word, my, my.”
Grams was ranting, that meant that she truly had been worried, but I’d only been gone for a couple of hours, she was talking days. I hoped that time in the wastelands moved the same as here. I looked at mom and saw tears resting on her lower lid, almost ready to come out.
“mom I-”
“It isn’t Wyatt’s fault…I cast the time acceleration spell, so to me and Wyatt, it seems like we just left, he was probably shielded by the Wastelands’ magic, and because I cast it I remained untouched. I guess it made it seem like the day had passed for anyone who wasn’t somehow shielded, Wyatt didn’t even know it happened, don’t blame anything on him.”
I looked at my mom, and she nodded and blew up a vase that was on the table by the wall, dad looked at the shattered pieces and nodded, the vase remade itself.
“See, we’re the perfect team!…ok, time to get David back home, hope we can find all the stuff we need for this potion.”
“We can’t…one of the ingredients is a tear of Anubis, and a Hair of Passion…whatever they might be called now, we don’t even know where to begin Ms. Halliwell…we’ve looked through the book, but none of the Warren women ever mention it.”
The guy with the brown hair seemed to be in awe of mom and dad, of me, of Chris, of Grams, and grandma Patty. He looked as if he were in the presence of Royalty.
“Well, actually that’s because we’re not supposed to…Anubis and Passion are both code words for the names of two very specific Elders…the first Elders. We could call, but I’m not entirely sure if they’d help us.” Grams looked at dad “you’re an Elder, maybe they’d listen to your plea more that they’d listen to ours”
“I hope they do, or I might not come back”
Without giving mom time to react to his statement dad rushed out in a swirl of orbs.
“LEO YOU BETTER NOT DO ANYTHING DUMB!!!” there was a sound like an oversized wind chime “DON’T YOU JINGLE ME MISTER!!!!!” mom looked at grams “Why would you say that to him? You know him well enough to know he’s a hot-head when it comes to the boys…UGH!!! This whole family needs therapy…if anyone needs me I’ll be in the kitchen.”
Mom walked out mumbling under her breath. I looked at grams and a smirk spread over my face, grams was in trouble and we all knew it.
“Matthew why don’t you pop on over to your house and see if you have any wolves tail, Cassie go to Chinatown and get powdered toadstool, Marianna, use the Mind-Link spell and see if you can get into Alaxio…let’s bring the boys home.”
The brown haired guy looked at me then the space around him was distorted and he was gone. The red haired girl grabbed a jacket and walked out of the attic, and the blond went and knelt by the pillows in a corner, soon the spell took over and she slumped forward.
“Mom, I think I should go up there and try to help Leo as best as I can, don’t want the Elders taking some harsh decision.” grandma Patty came over and hugged me tightly, I hugged back. “Take care of your mom Wyatt, she needs some support, and so does Chris…call your aunts, they should be here.” she hugged me one last time and then she stepped into a candle circle and was gone. It was time to bring David home, no matter what the cost.
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2
Stories posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
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