Patient Zero

[noazmale]

CHARMED
“Patient Zero”
By J. B. Tilton (a.k.a. NoAzMale) and Teri Thibeault (a.k.a. Tessalynne)
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Rating: K+

Disclaimer: “Charmed” and all related characters and events are the property of the WB television network, except for those characters specifically created for this story. This is a work of fan fiction and no infringement of copyright is intended.

* * *

(Authors note: This story takes place between season 5 episodes “Baby's First Demon” and “Lucky Charmed”.)

* * *

When one of the worst epidemics in human history threatens to return, the Charmed Ones cast a spell to find a cure for it. The result is Cole – vanquished weeks earlier for the second time – reentering their lives in a most unusual way.

* * *

ONE

“I’d say he’s in perfect health,” said Ava Nicolae, putting Piper’s baby back into his crib. “You really should have called me as soon as he was born. A hundred things can go wrong during a delivery or he could have had some serious medical condition that needed treatment right away. Thankfully neither of those seems to have happened. He appears to be in perfect health.”

“Yeah, well, we were sort of busy at the moment,” said Piper. “What with demons trying to steal him and all. And with no magic it was doubly hard to protect him. At least I had my sisters to help. You’re sure he’s fine? There’s nothing wrong with the baby?”

“He’s perfect,” replied Ava. “You know, that’s about the tenth time you’ve called him ‘the baby’. I haven’t heard you refer to him by name even once.”

“That’s because he doesn’t have one,” said Phoebe. “Piper and Leo haven’t picked one yet. We were all expecting a girl. When he popped out, it was something of a shock, let me tell you.”

“Oh, I see. Well, I’m sure you’ll come up with something soon. After all, you can’t keep calling him ‘the baby’ his entire life.”

“I know,” sighed Piper. “It’s just so hard especially since he’s a boy.”

“Let’s go downstairs and let him rest,” said Ava. “Baby’s usually don’t do much more than sleep the first few months, anyway.”

“Oh, they do more than that,” said Paige as the girls and Leo headed for the stairs. “He seems to wake up every two hours.”

“The price of being a parent,” said Ava. “You said demons tried to kidnap him?”

“Yeah,” said Leo. “That’s why we decided to call you. With everything that’s been going on lately we realized that we hadn’t had him checked out to make sure that nothing was wrong. I was a medic during the war and I know that sometimes something can be wrong that only a doctor can identify.”

“That would be World War II, right?” Ava asked, smiling slightly.

“That’s right,” said Leo. “You know I’m a White Lighter so you also know I’m a lot older than I appear.”

“Just checking,” said Ava as they all took seats in the living room.

“So,” said Phoebe, “how’s the Shuvani training coming along?”

“Not bad, I guess,” replied Ava. “I wish I had paid more attention to my mother when she was trying to teach me about it. But I guess I’m doing okay. But between that and my practice it doesn’t really leave much time for anything else.”

“How well we know that,” said Paige. “Fighting demons is practically a full-time job. Sometimes I wish they’d all take a vacation so we could enjoy a little down time.”

“Maybe they will,” said Ava. “Unfortunately, that’s not a possibility for a doctor. People get sick all the time and there’s not much you can do about that. But I have a lot of help at the clinic so at least I don’t have to handle the burden all by myself. And since Orin and Cree are no longer a threat I don’t have to worry about demon attacks. I can concentrate on people’s illnesses no matter how perplexing they may be.”

“You have a problem with one of your patients?” Piper asked.

“Not a problem exactly. A woman came in the other day with what I thought was the flu. Only it’s the most resilient flu I’ve ever seen. If I didn’t know better I’d swear it was the Spanish Flu. But the tests I’ve run indicate it’s not Spanish Flu. And she doesn’t respond well to treatment. I’m not really sure what to do about it.”

“Just pump her full of antibiotics,” said Paige. “It’s only the flu.”

“Which kills upwards of 35,000 people every year,” countered Ava. “’Just the flu’ is actually more dangerous than most people think. If left untreated it can actually kill. We’re just so used to being able to treat a lot of diseases we sometimes forget just how dangerous they can be.”

“Especially something like Spanish Flu,” said Leo. “I hadn’t been born yet but I remember my parents talking about it.”

“What was so horrible about it?” Paige asked. “I realize they didn’t have the drugs we have now but it couldn’t have been that bad.”

“Oh it was,” said Ava. “It’s been estimated that it killed between 50 and 100 million people. And as many as 500 million people – more than one-quarter of the world’s population – were infected by it. The Influenza epidemic of 1918 was one of the worst epidemic’s in recorded history.”

“Influenza?” Paige questioned. “Is that what it was? I thought you said it was Spanish Flu?”

“The flu is a form of influenza,” said Ava. “And the Spanish Flu was deadlier than most. It just suddenly appeared around June of 1918. And it raged across the world for 18 months. Then, about December of 1920, it just sort of died out. They never did find exactly what caused it or a cure for it.”

“Well, it’s understandable why they never found what caused it,” said Leo. “The Elders have theorized that it was actually some form of rhinitis caterralasis. It’s usually just called rhinitis.”

“That sounds similar to rhinitis acuta catarrhalis,” said Ava.

“That sounds serious,” said Piper.

“Actually,” said Ava, “it’s the Latin name for the common cold.”

“Well, rhinitis is similar to the common cold,” said Leo. “Ordinarily, it’s not very serious.”

“Maybe my patient has some modified strain of it,” said Ava.

“You’d better hope she doesn’t,” said Leo. “You won’t find a cure for it. Or even a treatment. Rhinitis is a demonic disease.”

“Wait a minute,” said Ava. “I thought humans couldn’t get demonic diseases and vice versa?”

“Generally, that’s true,” said Leo. “Even the Elders were at a loss to explain how a demonic disease comparable to the common cold could infect humans, let alone infect and kill as many as it did. To demons, it’s simply a minor annoyance. But to humans it can be deadly, as you are well aware. If your patient has that her chances aren’t very good.”

“This could be serious,” said Ava becoming gravely serious. “So far I have only the one case. But if it is this rhinitis – or a modified form of it – it’s possible we could be facing another epidemic like the one that happened in 1918.”

“I wouldn’t worry too much,” said Leo. “It’s been 80 years since a case of it was detected. It just suddenly disappeared as mysteriously as it appeared. It probably burned itself out.”

“Leo, it doesn’t work that way,” said Ava. “Diseases don’t just disappear unless there’s some kind of treatment or cure for it.”

“Well, there was a witch back then who was also a medical doctor,” said Leo. “She had reported that she thought she was close to finding a cure. Unfortunately both she and her White Lighter were killed by demons before she could finish her work. As far as I know she’s the only one who ever came close to finding a cure.”

“She must have,” replied Ava. “It’s the only thing that explains why the Spanish Flu suddenly died out. Leo, if my patient has some modified form of this rhinitis, we could be looking at a disaster in the making.”

“You really think it’s that serious?” Piper questioned.

“The Spanish Flu is one of the most communicable diseases ever identified,” said Ava. “A third of the world’s population was infected with it. And one-fifth of those died from it. If my patient has this there’s no telling how many people have been exposed to it. And they’ll expose everyone they come into contact with.

“The first known case of Spanish Flu in the United States was observed at Haskell County, Kansas. On 4 March 1918, an army cook named Albert Gitchell reported sick at Fort Riley, Kansas. Within days, over 500 men at the camp had reported sick. By March 11, it had reached New York City.

“The Spanish Flu pandemic has been described as the greatest medical holocaust in history and may have killed more people than the Black Death did in Europe between 1348 and 1350. The Black Death is estimated to have killed 30 – 60 percent of Europe's population.”

“I never realized it was that serious,” said Phoebe. “I remember learning about it in school but the way the teacher described it, it just sounded like a really bad case of the flu.”

“That’s an understatement,” said Ava. “If my patient has some form of this rhinitis, it could potentially be devastating. I just wish there was some way to know for sure if she has it or not.”

“There is,” said Leo. “One of the reasons it was able to spread to such a vast area was because it’s a demonic disease. White Lighters can’t heal demons nor can they heal any diseases that demons might have. Because rhinitis is a demonic disease, our healing powers don’t work on it.”

“Are you suggesting that you try and heal Ava’s patient?” Piper asked.

“I don’t think I have a choice,” said Leo. “If I can heal her, she’ll just be another mortal who has gotten over the flu. But if I can’t, it will mean the disease is demonic in nature. And that’s something I need to let the Elders know about. The entire world could be at risk.”

“Come on,” said Ava, picking up her bag. “Let’s get to my clinic. I have the patient isolated so she can’t infect anyone else. I hope you can heal her. If you can’t, I don’t know what we’re going to do. I have no experience dealing with a demonic disease. I wouldn’t even know where to begin to treat her for it.”

“No one does,” said Leo. “Demonic diseases normally don’t infect humans so it’s not usually a problem.” He kissed Piper on the cheek. “I’m going to orb Ava there. It will be faster than her driving. We shouldn’t be gone long. I’ll know in a few minutes whether I can heal her or not.”

“Just be careful,” said Piper. “I don’t want you coming down with this rhinitis.”

“I can’t,” said Leo. Then he looked at Ava. “But that doesn’t hold true for everyone.”

Without another word Leo orbed the two of them out of the manor. The sisters sat in the living room wondering what the next few minutes were going to bring.

[noazmale]

TWO

It was more than 20 minutes before Leo and Ava orbed back into the manor. When they did the sisters could tell that they were both upset.

“Fill them in on what we learned,” Leo said to Ava. Then he turned to Piper. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Without waiting for a response he immediately orbed out of the manor.

“Leo,” Piper called after him. He didn’t respond. She turned to Ava. “What’s going on?”

“Leo was right,” said Ava. “He tried to heal my patient but he couldn’t. He tried several times but failed each time. He said that proves the disease is demonic in nature. But there’s more. While I’ve been here another patient came in complaining of the same symptoms. Out of curiosity, I asked Leo to try and cure him. He couldn’t.

“So I made a few phone calls. My patients aren’t the only ones who have contracted this disease. Six more cases have been reported. Two others here in San Francisco. One is Los Angeles. Two in San Bernadino. And one in Salt Lake City, Utah.”

“Utah?” Paige questioned. “How could someone that far away have become infected?”

“I don’t know,” replied Ava. “But one of my nurses has complained of a headache and sore throat. That’s two of the symptoms. It’s too early to tell for sure but I’m convinced she may have contracted it from the first patient. Except she had no direct contact with the patient. Which means this thing is beginning to spread.”

“Isn’t there anything you can do?” Phoebe asked. “Antibiotics or something.”

“I’ve tried,” said Ava. “My first patient has resisted all forms of treatment. And she’s getting worse. At the rate she’s failing she probably doesn’t have more than 24 hours before she dies. Leo said he was going to speak to his Elders. He said they need to be made aware of what’s going on. But from what little I know of them I’m not sure there’s anything even they can do.”

“Well, they do have a lot more power than regular White Lighters,” offered Phoebe.

“But they’re still basically White Lighters,” countered Piper. “If a White Lighter’s healing can’t cure this thing it doesn’t matter how powerful they are. It still won’t work.”

“How dangerous is this?” Paige asked.

“Well,” said Ava, “the incubation period for the Spanish Flu is relatively short. Only about 1 – 4 days. That’s in contrast to the ‘normal’ flu that can incubate as long as 2 weeks. But this is some variant of the Spanish Flu, I believe. Which means there’s no telling how long the incubation period is. And while it’s incubating, anyone the infected person comes into contact with can be infected.

“All it takes is one person getting infected and then getting on a plane or train or some other form of mass transit. In an enclosed space like that, even on a bus, the risk of infection is even greater. And if they only infect, say, 5 people, each of those people will carry it infecting even more people. Everyone they come into contact with. In very short order it could effectively become a worldwide epidemic.”

“And no cure,” said Piper.

“Exactly,” said Ava. “Most epidemics are eventually contained because some kind of treatment or cure is found. Even if there’s no cure, a treatment slowing the disease can help to stop the spread. But in this case, there’s not even any treatment that will slow it down. It won’t take long before it will become completely unmanageable.”

“And there’s nothing you can do?” Phoebe asked. “Nothing at all?”

“Well,” said Ava, “the witch Leo mentioned. The one that was working on a cure. He did say she thought she was getting close. If I could take a look at her notes I might be able to continue her work. But I’m not sure that’s even possible. It was over 80 years ago. If her notes had been found I’m sure some researcher somewhere would have continued her work. I’ve never heard of anyone coming even remotely close to finding a cure.”

“What about a spell?” Paige asked. “Couldn’t we write a spell that would cure it? Then all we’d have to do is cast the spell on anyone who was infected.”

“I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” said Piper. “First, we don’t know how a spell like that would affect people. Magic has a funny habit of doing unexpected things. Second, there’s no telling how many people are infected. We’d have no way of knowing if we got them all.”

“The worst thing is, I can’t even call the CDC and warn them,” said Ava. “With a potentially global epidemic such as this my first call would usually be to the CDC. They’d be able to mobilize a virtual army to help combat the disease. But I can’t do that with this. I can’t tell them it’s a demonic disease. They’d never believe me.”

“And there’s that whole ‘don’t expose magic to the mortal world’ thing, too,” said Phoebe.

Suddenly Leo orbed back into the manor. He took a seat on the sofa next to Ava. He seemed to be preoccupied with something.

“Well, I filled the Elders in on what’s going on. They’re as concerned as we are. Many of them were Elders when the Spanish Flu epidemic occurred in 1918. They remember what it was like and how helpless they were to combat it.”

“You mean there was nothing they could do about it back then?” Piper asked.

“Nothing,” replied Leo. “Not even their healing powers were of any use. They even tried using magic. That turned out to be an even bigger disaster.”

“How?” Ava asked. “We were just discussing the sisters maybe casting a spell to stop this thing.”

“That wouldn’t be a good idea,” said Leo. He rubbed his temple slightly. “As I said, the Elders tried something similar. Some people did recover from the flu. But more of them didn’t. In fact, in many cases, it made the situation worse. The flu began spreading faster than normal. The Elders theorized that since it was magical in nature, the added power of their magic caused it to become even more virulent.”

“The flu was magical?” Paige questioned.

“Well,” said Leo, “rhinitis is a demonic disease. Demons are basically creatures of magic. So any disease that could affect them would have to be magical in nature.”

“Were they able to explain how a demonic disease could affect humans?” Ava asked.

“No, they couldn’t. They still don’t understand how a demonic disease could jump to humans.”

“Inter-species diseases can be quite common,” said Ava. “Swine flu, for example. It was originally a disease of pigs. But it mutated and crossed over affecting humans. The same thing with avian flu. In fact there’s a whole list of diseases that jump from one species to another. I imagine this is something similar.”

“That shouldn’t be possible,” said Leo. “Demons are magical creatures. Humans aren’t. While there are similarities in their DNA, there aren’t enough similarities to allow a demonic disease to take hold. Just like a human disease affecting a demon. Demonic immune systems are very aggressive, overwhelming normal diseases as soon as they enter the body. Even the most aggressive human diseases are no match for a demonic constitution. That’s why one can’t infect the other.”

“Well, obviously one has,” said Ava. “Leo. This witch you mentioned. The one who was working on a cure for the first Spanish Flu. Is there any chance that any of her notes are still around? Something I could look at that might give me an idea how to fight this thing?”

“I’m afraid not,” said Leo. “Her name was Elizabeth McCoy. But like I said, both she and her White Lighter were killed before she could develop a cure. The Elders figured that she was so busy working on a cure for the disease that some demon took her by surprise.”

“Which doesn’t explain why her White Lighter was killed,” said Phoebe. “Or how. Even if she were killed by a demon, the demon shouldn’t have been able to kill her White Lighter. We’ve learned often enough that a White Lighter can only be killed by the poison from a Dark Lighter’s bolt.”

“Which means a demon and a Dark Lighter must have been working together,” said Piper. “And considering the timing of their deaths, I find it just a little suspicious that they would both be killed.”

“You think she might have found a cure?” Ava asked. “And that a demon killed her before she could deliver that cure?”

“It would also explain why her White Lighter was killed,” said Piper. “Even if a demon were able to kill her, he couldn’t kill her White Lighter. He’d just have to orb away. Then he could tell the Elders everything he knew about her work and they could possibly have found another witch to complete it thereby coming up with a cure.”

“And since no cure was ever discovered,” interjected Phoebe, “maybe this demon or Dark Lighter took it so they couldn’t use it.”

“But someone must have used it,” said Ava. “The disease eventually stopped. As fast as it was spreading the only logical answer was that someone used it to stop the plague. But why would a demon be concerned with a disease that kills humans anyway? Don’t they want to kill all humans?”

“Not necessarily,” said Leo. “They’d want to subjugate and control humans. But I have no idea why a demon would want to stop the plague. It would have helped in taking over the mortal plane. Once most of the humans were dead it would have been a simple matter to just take over. It doesn’t make sense that any demon would want to stop the plague.”

“If I could only see this witch’s notes,” said Ava. “There might be a clue in them that would help me come up with a treatment for this. But I don’t suppose there’s any way to see what she was working on.”

“Maybe there is,” said Piper. “Look, we can’t cast a spell to cure the disease. The cure could end up being worse than the disease itself. But what about a spell that will allow Ava to see what the witch was working on? Something the witch thought would be useful against it?”

“That’s a good idea,” said Phoebe. “It wouldn’t be the first time we’ve tried to get something from the past. Remember when we summoned Melinda Warren? That worked like a charm.”

“And nearly got her and you three killed, as I recall,” said Leo. He rubbed hit temple again.

“That’s only because of the warlock trapped in her locket,” said Piper. “This should be relatively safe. We won’t be trying to bring anyone into the future. Just some information. I don’t see how that could be dangerous.”

“Well,” said Leo thoughtfully. “It’s still risky. But I think it’s worth the risk. If you don’t do something this thing is just going to get worse. And it could eventually get to the point where there’s nothing that even you three can do about it.”

“I’ll get started on the spell right away,” said Phoebe. “I should be able to come up with something pretty quickly.”

“Write the spell so that it affects Ava,” said Piper. “She’s the one that needs to know the information. And none of us are trained medical personnel, except for Leo. We might not recognize something that is useful. Don’t worry, Ava. The spell shouldn’t have any adverse affects toward you. It should just give you the information you’re looking for to duplicate the cure.”

“I’m not worried,” said Ava. “Besides, I’m a Shuvani. Risk is part of the job description.” She looked at Leo who appeared to be grimacing slightly. “Leo, are you okay? You don’t look so good.”

“Just tired I guess,” replied Leo. “Things have been moving pretty fast. I guess I’m just more worn out than I thought.”

Ava reached up and put her hand on Leo’s neck.

“Leo, you’re burning up,” she said. “You’re running a very high fever.”

“That’s impossible,” said Piper, feeling Leo’s forehead. “White Lighter’s can’t get sick. They’re immune to all sickness.”

“She’s right,” replied Leo. “I’m just tired, like I said. I’m sure after I get some sleep . . . .”

Before he could finish he suddenly slumped on the couch. He appeared to be sleeping. Ava quickly checked him over.

“This is serious,” she said. “He’s unconscious. I think he’s infected with this flu. But I’ve never seen anything react this quickly. He must have become infected when he tried to heal my patient. But that was less than an hour ago. Not even the most virulent disease known operates that fast.”

“You have to do something,” cried Piper. “Without Leo we don’t even have any way to contact the Elders for help. We can’t just let him die.”

“I don’t know what to do,” said Ava apologetically. “Nothing I’ve tried seems to work. My patient just seems to be getting worse. And now it looks like Leo might be as sick as she is.”

[noazmale]

THREE

“He’s stable for the moment,” said Ava, pulling a blanket up to keep Leo warm. He was still lying on the sofa and she had given him some medicine she carried in her bag. “But I don’t know how long that’s going to last. The antibiotic I gave him seems to help initially. But very quickly it’s not going to work anymore. I’m completely at a loss about what to do next.”

“Phoebe should have the spell ready soon,” said Paige. “While you were taking care of Leo we decided to try the spell that should give you the information you need to cure this thing. Once she finishes it we’ll use it and then you should know what to do.”

“I hope it doesn’t take long,” said Ava. “I don’t know how long Leo can last. The disease seems to be affecting him much more rapidly than my other patients.”

“That’s probably because he’s a White Lighter,” said Piper, coming into the room. “White Lighter’s are predominantly magical beings, just like demons. So it’s probably affecting him even quicker.”

“This just doesn’t make any sense,” said Ava. “A disease that affects demons, humans, and White Lighters. Leo never said anything about White Lighters being affected in 1918.”

“Maybe they weren’t,” suggested Paige. “You did say this appeared to be some kind of mutated strain or something. Maybe the original strain couldn’t affect White Lighters but this mutated one can.”

“That’s possible,” said Ava. “There are diseases that affect a particular race of people. Sickle cell anemia, for one. While it can affect other people, black people seem to be the most affected. If this is a mutated form of the original disease it’s possible the mutation allows it to affect White Lighters where the original one didn’t.”

“I just had a thought,” said Paige. “Ava, how is the disease transmitted?”

“I’m not certain. I guess it’s airborne. Leo never touched my patient when he tried to heal her. So my guess is that it’s airborne. Why?”

“You don’t seem to be affected,” said Paige. “And none of us seems to be affected.”

“That’s because we’re human,” said Ava. “It might take longer for it to incubate in a human body. That could explain why Leo got sick so quickly. The incubation period in a White Lighter must be extremely short.”

“So if it’s airborne,” said Paige, “that means anyone that Leo has come into contact with could potentially be infected.”

“Probably,” said Ava. “Everyone has certain resistances. That’s why one person can become sicker much quickly than another even if they’re exposed at the same time. It all depends on the immune system of the person infected.”

“And Leo went to check with the Elders,” said Paige. “After he was infected.”

“Which means he might have all ready infected everyone ‘up there’,” said Piper. “If they all become sick as quickly as Leo did, all of the White Lighters and Elders could be incapacitated very quickly.”

“Leaving witches everywhere at risk,” said Paige. “And if we don’t come up with a cure fast . . . .”

“It could potentially wipe out every White Lighter and Elder that comes into contact with it,” finished Ava.

* * *

“Well, it looks like the demons might win by default,” said Piper. “If we can’t stop this disease every human, White Lighter, and Elder is at risk. It could kill off everyone leaving only the demons.”

“Not necessarily,” said Ava. “Like I said, this is some mutated form of the Spanish Flu. Which, according to Leo, is a mutated form of the demonic disease rhinitis. It’s quite possible this mutated form will have the same effect on demons as it does on humans and White Lighters. Which means they’re at as much risk as the rest of us.”

“So what do we do?” Paige asked. “Ask the Underworld to help us find a cure? I don’t think that’s going to happen.”

“More than likely no demon would believe us,” said Piper. “As arrogant as demons are they’ll probably figure they’re immune. Or at best, they’ll figure this disease can’t really hurt them. Leo did say that the rhinitis was a minor disease among demons. Something like the common cold. No demon would believe it’s mutated enough to be a serious threat to them.”

“Then our only hope is Phoebe,” said Ava. “She has to come up with a spell to give me the information I need and we need to hope like hell it works. If it doesn’t I don’t know what to do. I’ve all ready tried everything within medical reason to combat this thing. But nothing works. At best it alleviates the symptoms for a short time but it doesn’t tackle the disease itself. We need to come up with something that will attack the disease and not just the symptoms.”

“What about Michael?” Paige asked. “Maybe he could help.”

“Michael?” Ava questioned.

“He’s another White Lighter,” said Piper. “Well, sort of. He’s also half demon and you might say he’s a spy in the Underworld. He might be able to help but we have no way to get hold of him. We can’t even warn him.”

“Warn him about the disease?” questioned Ava. “But if he’s in the Underworld he wouldn’t be at risk. Unless he comes into contact with someone who’s infected there’s no way for him to get the disease.”

“Michael is a Warrior White Lighter,” explained Piper. “He’s only half White Lighter. His other personae is Malevant, a very high level demon. And he passes information to the Elders when he can. If he goes ‘up there’ to deliver some information, he could get infected. Then, when he goes back to the Underworld, he could infect all the demons.”

“And by the time any of them figures out what’s going on, it would be too late,” said Ava. “What about another White Lighter? Don’t you know of any you could get hold of?”

“A couple,” said Paige. “But it would take a while to get hold of them. And I don’t think we have that kind of time.”

“Then Phoebe better come up with that spell and quick,” said Piper. “She’s the only chance we have of stopping this thing.”

“I think I have one,” said Phoebe, coming into the room. “It took a bit and it’s not my best work, but it should do the trick. At least it should give Ava the information she needs to come up with some kind of treatment.”

“Good,” said Piper, moving over to the chair Ava sat in. “Now, we’ve never really done anything like this before. So we can’t really be sure how it’s going to work. But it should give you the information you need.”

“I understand,” said Ava. “You’d better use the spell now. I don’t know how long Leo has. But I do know my human patients aren’t going to last much longer. And I don’t know how long it’s going to take to mix up the cure if I do get it.”

“Okay,” said Phoebe, pulling out a sheet of paper. “I guess here goes nothing.

“A demon ailment from the past, that’s now a human blight.

“To make sure this will be the last, show Ava how to make it right.”

The magic from the spell began to envelope Ava. She sat with her eyes closed waiting for the spell to take effect. She expected that the information would just suddenly “appear” in her mind. But to be honest, she wasn’t really sure what would happen. The magic swirled around her for a moment, and then Phoebe and Paige watched in stunned horror as Ava and Piper suddenly faded away and vanished from the manor.

* * *

“What the hell happened?” said Piper looking around.

She and Ava were standing in what appeared to be a large cavern. There was no apparent light source but light seemed to fill the cavern. Several passageways led out of the cavern at various places along the walls. Ava looked around, a perplexed look on her face.

“Where are we?” she asked.

“Uh oh,” said Piper. “I think I recognize this place. It’s the Underworld.”

“The Underworld?” questioned Ava. “You mean the same Underworld where the demons live?”

“One and the same,” replied Piper. “And with Leo out of commission there’s no way to call for him to come get us.”

“What do we do?” Ava asked. “If we’re found down here . . . .”

“I know, I know,” said Piper. “Our only hope is to find Michael. Only down here his name is Malevant. But I have no idea where to even start looking.”

“We’d better do something,” said Ava. “If a demon finds us down we could be in a great deal of trouble.”

Before Piper could answer they heard movement. As they turned toward the sound of the movement, a figure wearing nondescript gray robes entered the chamber. He was about six feet tall and even in the dim light of the cavern they could tell he had brown hair. From all appearances he was just another human. He stopped just inside the chamber and looked around. Where Piper and Ava stood, it would have been impossible for him to miss them.

Ava stared at the man expecting an immediate attack. Piper had a different reaction. She just stared at him in complete disbelief. Her mouth hung partially open. She didn’t move for a moment. What she was looking at was clearly impossible.

“Cole Turner?” she finally said aloud, a note of utter and total disbelief in her voice.

[noazmale]

FOUR

“Turner?” questioned Ava. “Phoebe’s ex-husband? I thought you said you vanquished him?”

“We did,” said Piper. “Twice. We vanquished him once I’ll do it again.”

Piper raised her hands and tapped into her explosive power. The last time she had faced Cole he had tried to kill her and Paige. At the last minute Phoebe had helped them vanquish him. With any luck the invulnerability he had exhibited before being vanquished had been vanquished with him when they had vanquished him the second time.

Only nothing happened. She tried again and again, nothing happened. She just stared at Cole. They never knew how their powers were going to work in the Underworld. Apparently this time her powers weren’t working at all. Which meant a single energy ball would be enough to kill both her and Ava.

Cole looked around the cavern for a moment, and then turned and walked to the center of the room. He all but ignored Piper and Ava. Piper stared at him in surprise. He acted as if they weren’t even in the cavern.

“Well, that’s different,” said Piper. “The last time I saw Cole he tried to kill me. Now he’s ignoring us like we’re not even here.”

“What’s going on?” Ava asked.

“I wish I knew,” said Piper.

They watched as Cole stood in the center of the cavern as if waiting for something. Suddenly another demon flamed into the room. This demon was as tall as Cole and wore long dark red-like robes with an upside down pentagram on the chest. And his eyes were coal black.

There was another demon with the one dressed in the red-like robe. This one, like the other two, was in human form. But he had numerous cuts and bruises on his exposed skin. And his left arm was wrapped in a sling. He looked about furtively as if expecting an attack at any moment.

“I’m Belthazor,” said Cole. “You sent for me?”

“I am Candor,” said the first demon.

“Yes, sir, I know who you are,” said Cole, bowing slightly to the demon.

“Then you also know what I am,” said Candor.

“You are one of the Triad,” responded Cole. “All demons know of the Triad.”

“The Triad?” Piper whispered to Ava. “That’s impossible. Cole vanquished them years ago. When he supposedly was trying to be good. And Cole was the Source of All Evil when we vanquished him the first time. Why would he be bowing to a member of the Triad? They would have served him.”

“Piper,” said Ava. “Look.”

Piper looked over at Ava and noticed her hand passing through a large boulder sitting on the floor next to them.

“I tried to lean against it but my hand just passes through it,” said Ava. “And it’s the same with the wall.” She passed her hand through the wall behind them. “What does this mean?”

“I don’t know,” said Piper. “Neither Cole nor the Triad should be here. They’ve been vanquished. And Cole pretended like he didn’t even see us. Something’s not right here.”

“Could we be dead?” Ava asked. “Maybe we’re ghosts. That’s why my hand passes through the stone. And why Cole apparently didn’t see us.”

“I don’t think so,” said Piper. “Death isn’t here to pick us up.”

“Death?” Ava questioned.

“There is an entity called Death,” explained Piper. “When someone dies, he shows up to ferry their souls to the other side. Death isn’t here which means we probably aren’t dead.”

“You talk like you’ve had personal experience with that,” said Ava.

“You could say that,” said Piper, thinking of Prue for a moment. “But something strange is going on here. Let’s listen and see what we can find out. If they can’t see us they probably don’t even know we’re here.”

“This is Traylor,” said Candor, indicated the injured demon next to him. “As you can see, he was less than successful in completing his latest assignment. He is the third such demon to fail this particular assignment.”

“And you want to hire me for that assignment,” Cole said.

“You were . . . recommended,” said Candor. “It is clear our usual tactics are not working in this situation. I have heard of some of your accomplishments. They are quite impressive. Especially for one who is only half demon.”

“I have a unique perspective,” said Cole. “What is the assignment?”

“An underling is being held captive on the mortal plane,” said Candor. “We need him freed and returned to the Underworld. There are some questions we would like to ask him.”

“With all due deference,” said Cole, “I don’t do rescue missions. I specialize in witches. The unique perspective I mentioned? It is an understanding of humans that most demons do not possess. That, in part, is what has allowed me to garner such an impressive reputation.”

“I am aware of your specialization,” said Candor. “It is why you were recommended. The underling I mentioned is being held by a witch. Part of the assignment is to return the underling to us. The other part is to dispatch the witch. We have no idea what this underling may have told her. We can’t risk that she may have passed some of that information on to her Elders.”

“She has a White Lighter,” said Cole. It wasn’t a question. It was a simple statement of fact.

“That’s correct,” said Candor. “Both the witch and the White Lighter must be dealt with. If the underling has told them anything of the Underworld, that information could be dangerous to us. We want the underling returned and the witch and White Lighter killed before they can pass on any more information.”

“How do you know they haven’t passed information all ready?” Cole asked.

“We don’t,” said Candor. “So it is imperative that the situation be rectified as quickly as possible. To minimize the information the underling can tell the witch.”

“I see,” said Cole. “I see why you want to hire me. I’ll take the assignment. But my fee for it is double my normal fee.”

“You try to extort the Triad?” Candor asked, his temper flaring.

“Not at all,” said Cole. He looked over at Traylor. “Let me guess. You shimmered in and started throwing fireballs. You figured she was just a human witch so you should be able to get the drop on her.”

“Something like that,” replied Traylor, glancing at Candor. “But as you can see, she proved to be more formidable than I had counted on.”

“That’s partly why my fee is double,” said Cole to Candor. “You said this was the third attempt on the witch. Which means she knows someone is after her. She’ll be on her guard. That’s going to make it difficult for me to get close enough to her to kill her.

“Plus, she has a White Lighter. If I need to take him out too, I’m going to need help. I can’t kill a White Lighter. Only a Dark Lighter can do that. Which means I’m going to have to hire someone to do that part of the job. I’ll take the job. But my fee is double.”

“Agreed,” said Candor, after a moment. “You will receive half the payment now and the other half when the assignment is completed. But hear me, Belthazor. The Triad does not suffer failure by underlings easily. Once we are finished here Traylor will be vanquished for his failure. Fail us in this, and you will suffer the same fate.”

“In that case,” said Cole, “I would suggest you not vanquish Traylor. I will have need of him. He can give me information that can be useful in getting to the witch. I will need to speak with him to learn what he knows. I can’t do that if you vanquish him.”

Candor looked at Traylor. He seemed to be considering the matter. Finally he turned back to Cole.

“Very well,” he said. “Learn what you can from him. But if you should fail to return the underling to us and if you do not kill the witch and her White Lighter, then you will both be vanquished for your failure.”

“I won’t fail,” said Cole, looking at Traylor.

“See that you don’t,” said Candor. Without another word he flamed out of the chamber and was gone.

“Thanks,” said Traylor. “I thought for sure they were going to vanquish me.”

“Save your thanks,” said Cole. “I couldn’t care less if they vanquish you or not. But what I told Candor was true. I need you to tell me everything you know about the witch. And the underling. We’re not going to be good friends. Now you owe me. And trust me: one day I’ll collect on that favor.”

“I understand.”

“Now, what can you tell me?”

“The underling I don’t know much about. His name is Jezic and he’s an underling of Beelzbor. I was never told why he was on the mortal plane. All I was told was what Candor told you. He had been captured by the witch and she was holding him captive. When I went to retrieve him she attacked me on sight. I was lucky to get back to the Underworld alive.”

“Why would she take a demon captive instead of just vanquishing him?” Cole asked, his brow wrinkled in confusion. “Why not just vanquish him like she tried to do to you? And like she apparently did with your two predecessors?”

“I don’t know. I can tell you she has come kind of sound power. It can be deafening. And as you can see,” he held up the arm that was in the sling, “it can also be dangerous. I barely had time to shimmer out before she attacked me a second time.”

“Okay,” said Cole. “Anything else you know about her?”

“She’s some kind of medical doctor. I did learn she was doing some research on some disease that’s threatening humans right now. Apparently it’s spreading all over the Earth. She’s been trying to find a cure for it.”

“That could be useful. The humans have just finished a conflict that engulfed most of the world. They call it the Great War. I’ve heard about this disease. They call it the Spanish Flu and apparently it can be quite lethal to humans. But that doesn’t explain why she would take a demon captive. Demons are immune to human diseases.”

“I don’t know. All I know is she has him hold up in some building. She has a lot of equipment there. I think it’s where she’s doing her research on the disease. It’s on the outskirts of town. It doesn’t make much sense to me. I would think she’d do her research at a hospital or someplace like that.”

“Not necessarily,” replied Cole, thoughtfully. “She might want to minimize any risk to other humans. In that case, she’d want to do her research in a place that’s secluded from other humans. In case of an accident or something.”

“But she has her White Lighter,” suggested Traylor. “Surely he could just cure them if something happened.”

“Maybe. But if she’s secluded it might make it easier to get to her. I just have to figure out the best way to do that. After three failed attempts on her life she’s bound to be suspicious of almost anyone new she meets.”

“I don’t know much else,” said Traylor. “Like I said, she’s got some kind of laboratory set up in that building and she’s holding Jezic there.”

“Thanks. I guess that’s all I need. But don’t forget you still owe me. And I’ll expect you to repay the favor when I come to collect it.”

“Don’t worry,” said Traylor, “you kept Candor from vanquishing me. I won’t forget. Whatever you need, you just have to ask.”

Cole just smiled then turned and left, leaving Traylor alone in the chamber.

“Did you hear that?” Ava asked. “The way they were talking it sounds like it’s just after World War I. They called it the Great War until World War II happened. Turner said they were calling the new disease the Spanish Flu. But that’s impossible. That was over 80 years ago. Could we have gone back in time?”

“I don’t think so,” said Piper. “Phoebe’s spell. It said ‘show Ava how to make it right’. I think I know what’s going on here. And why Cole nor any of the other demons seem to notice us here. I don’t think we’re actually here. I think this is a vision of some kind.”

“A vision?” Ava questioned.

“Yes. Phoebe’s spell is allowing us to witness what actually happened back then.”

“I see. So by witnessing what happened I find out what Elizabeth McCoy was doing to find the cure and maybe that will help me find a cure. I understand. What I don’t understand is why you’re here. Phoebe’s spell was designed for me.”

“That’s what happens with magic sometimes. It can do unpredictable things. Maybe I got caught up in the spell because I was sitting next to you.”

“Okay, that makes sense. But what does any of this have to do with finding a cure for the disease? We know it’s a mutated form of a demonic disease. But I don’t see how seeing Turner being hired to kill McCoy has anything to do finding a cure for the disease.”

“Afraid I can’t answer that,” said Piper. “All I know is Phoebe’s spell is supposed to give you the information you need. So we’d better catch up with Cole to find out what happens next. We really don’t know what might be relevant or not.”

Piper and Ava followed Cole out of the chamber.

[noazmale]

FIVE

As Piper and Ava exited the chamber they looked around. They didn’t appear to be in the Underworld any longer. Instead, they seemed to be in the warehouse district of some city. The architecture of the buildings indicated they were from the early part of the 20th century. It was dark out and a half moon hung low in the sky.

“Well, this is different,” said Ava. “How did we get here?”

“It’s the vision,” said Piper. “I’d guess we probably jumped forward to another time. Phoebe’s spell was designed to give you the information you need to fight the disease. I think the spell is only revealing what might be considered the relevant parts.”

“What’s that?” Ava asked, pointing to the side of a nearby building.

Piper looked over and saw a figure crouched near the corner of the building. From their vantage point, and the lack of light, it was impossible to tell exactly who – or what – the figure was. As they watched, a second figure came from the opposite direction and appeared to be heading toward the first. The second figure walked with a discernable limp.

Suddenly the first figure stepped out from behind the building and cast a fireball at the second. The fireball narrowly missed the second figure as he dove to one side to avoid the weapon. As he did, some books and papers he was carrying scattered on the pavement. The second figure fell to the ground and tried to back away as the first figure, obviously a demon, advanced on him.

“You’re a hard human to find,” said the demon. “Now it’s time to put an end to your meddling.” The demon formed another fireball and stood over the man.

“I’m not looking anymore,” the man pleaded as he tried to back away from the demon, undisguised terror in his voice. “I told the other one I wouldn’t do it anymore. I’ll destroy all my notes. I swear. Please, just don’t hurt me.”

Suddenly a low pitch whine could be heard. At nearly the same instant, the demon was knocked back, falling to the ground and the fireball was extinguished. As it began to regain its’ feet a woman stepped up between the two.

“Out for a late night stroll?” the woman asked the demon, her hands raised in an offensive gesture. “You’re brave enough against an unarmed innocent. How are you against someone who isn’t quite so defenseless?”

“Witch,” hissed the demon. He looked at the man cowering on the ground. “There’ll be another time, human. Count on it.” The demon then shimmered and vanished from the street.

The woman stood looking around for a moment and then apparently decided the demon had left. She turned and tried to help the man to his feet.

“Please,” the man pleaded, “I promise not to do anymore digging. Please don’t hurt me.”

“I’m not going to hurt you,” said the woman. “The . . . he’s gone. And he won’t be back at least for a while. Come on, let me help you up. I’m a friend.”

The man seemed to be a bit more relaxed. As the woman helped him to his feet he became clearer in the ambient light of the night. He stood about six feet tall. His hair was parted in the middle although it was cut short over his ears. He was wearing small, round wireframe glasses and a suit that was more than ten years old. It was somewhat thread bear. As the man stood unsteadily on his feet, he looked around. Piper stood looking at Cole hardly believing what she saw.

“My cane,” said Cole. “I need my cane. I can hardly walk without it.”

The woman looked around for a moment and then bent down and retrieved the cane from the ground. She handed it to Cole and then began to help him collect his books and papers.

“You’re not going to hurt me?” Cole questioned as they collected the items.

“No, I’m not,” said the woman. “I’m Elizabeth McCoy.”

“Turner. Cole Turner. I guess I should thank you. That man was going to kill me, I just know it.”

“Man?” questioned McCoy, skepticism in her voice. They finished collecting the books and papers and stood up facing each other. “That wasn’t a man.”

“You know about them?” questioned Cole almost timidly. “I didn’t think most people believed in them anymore.”

“You might say I’ve made their acquaintance before,” said McCoy. “Why was it after you? You said you weren’t looking anymore. That you told the other one that. Looking for what?”

“He . . . it called you a witch,” said Cole.

“That’s right,” said McCoy, looking around. “I’m a witch. Witches and demons are mortal enemies. That’s why he left. He obviously wasn’t ready to go up against a witch. Now, answer my question. Why was it after you? What were you looking for?”

“I’m a reporter,” said Cole. “Freelance stuff. It helps pay the bills while I work on my Ph.D. I was doing a comparative analysis of demons from various cultures for my dissertation. It was going along pretty good, too, when suddenly one of those things showed up. It said something about my research being too dangerous or something. Then it tried to kill me. That’s the third one that’s tried. I’ve been lucky so far. I thought for sure that one would succeed when you showed up.”

“Come on, Mr. Turner,” said McCoy, looking around. “We’re vulnerable here. Let’s go some place where we can have some privacy.”

She turned and walked away and Cole limped along beside her. As they did, Cole looked around furtively as if expecting an attack at any minute.

* * *

“Is this where you live?” Cole asked as they entered a large warehouse-like building. The building was equipped with a small sofa bed, a kitchen area, a couple of doors off to one side, and in the middle of the room sat what looked like a scientist’s table filled with all sorts of equipment.

“Not exactly,” said McCoy. “I kind of work here. Cole Turner, I’d like you meet Martin Shoal. You might say he’s sort of my research assistant.”

As Cole turned a man came out of one of the rooms. He was as tall as Cole but had sandy colored hair. He was dressed casually and he had a look of concern on his face.

“Elizabeth,” said Shoal, “what is he doing here?”

“We sort of met while I was coming here,” said McCoy. “Mr. Turner seems to be the recipient of some demon’s attention. If I hadn’t shown up when I did, he would have been killed.”

“Demon?” questioned Shoal, glancing at Cole. “Are you sure?’

“You know about them, too?” Cole asked, shaking hands with Shoal. When Cole pulled his hand back it was covered in a bluish-powdery substance that sparkled slightly. Neither McCoy nor Shoal seemed to notice it. Cole immediately put his hand in his pocket to hide it.

“He’s a White Lighter,” Piper said to Ava. “Cole told us he had the same reaction when he first shook hands with Leo. He explained it was the physical reaction of White Lighter’s innate goodness interacting with the innate evil of a demonic body.”

“You could say that,” said Shoal. “Elizabeth, are you sure it’s wise to bring him here? We have our own demon troubles.”

“I couldn’t leave him out there,” replied McCoy. “The demon might return. I was able to scare it off. I think it’s best if Mr. Turner remains here until we’re sure it’s safe for him to leave.”

“You don’t seem surprised to find that demons exist,” Shoal said to Cole.

“Well, as I was telling Miss McCoy,” replied Cole, “I’m a reporter and I’m working on my Ph.D. I was doing my dissertation on a comparative analysis of demons from various cultures. Naturally I didn’t believe they were real. But they are a recurring theme throughout virtually all cultures in history. One day one of those demons showed up at my office. It said something about me getting too close or something and tried to kill me.”

“He also said it was the third attack on him,” said McCoy.

“Well, I’d say your research has probably gotten you very close to discovering empirical evidence that demons exist,” said Shoal. “They can’t have that. Demons don’t usually bother most mortals. But if you were to be able to prove they exist, that could change. They’ll do just about anything to keep their secret.”

“Well, I’ve decided my dissertation will have to be on something else,” said Cole. “I tried to tell them that. That I was going to destroy all my research and concentrate on something else. But they don’t seem to believe me.”

“Demons aren’t real big on trust,” said Shoal. “But I still think it’s a bad idea to have him here.”

“I’m supposed to protect the innocent,” said Elizabeth. “I couldn’t very well just leave him out there. Not after he was attacked. It will be okay, Martin. Once it’s safe for him to leave he’ll be on his way.”

“What are you doing here?” Cole asked, limping over to the table. “This looks like some kind of mad scientist’s setup.”

“It’s part of my work,” said McCoy. “I’m sure you’ve heard of the epidemic that is raging across many countries right now.”

“Oh, what they’re calling the Spanish Flu?” questioned Cole. “Of course I have. I’m a reporter. What’s that got to do with all this?”

“Well, I’m working on trying to find a cure for it,” said McCoy. “Or at least some kind of treatment. So far everything the medical community has tried has had little effect. If I can figure out the mechanism of the disease I might be able to design some kind of treatment to combat it.”

“Good luck with that,” said Cole. “No one even seems to know where it came from. Unless you know what caused it I don’t see how you can figure out a way to fight it.”

McCoy and Shoal glanced at each other. A look that did not go unnoticed by Cole. He looked at them both for a moment.

“What?” he questioned. “You mean, you know what cause the flu? Why haven’t you told anyone? With that kind of information they might be able to find a cure. You can’t keep it to yourself.”

“We can’t tell anyone,” said Elizabeth. “Not just yet. No one would believe us.”

“What do you mean no one would believe you?” Cole questioned.

“I guess we should show him,” said McCoy.

“Show a reporter?” questioned Shoal. “Not my first choice.”

“Show me what?” Cole questioned.

“Mr. Turner,” said McCoy, “what I’m about to show you cannot be revealed to anyone. Like I said, no one would believe you. And it’s imperative that I continue my research. I can’t do that if anyone should find out what we’ve got here.”

“Okay,” said Cole hesitantly. “You make it sound mysterious.”

“Come on,” said Shoal. “I’d advise you not to get too close. He can be unpredictable.”

Cole followed McCoy and Shoal into the room that Shoal had come out of. As they entered the room Cole noticed a large cage made of iron bars sitting in the middle of the room. Inside the case was a man. He appeared to be about 30 and was dressed similarly to Shoal. When the three entered the room, he turned towards them.

“Bringing spectators in now?” asked the man in the cage. “You know it’s only a matter of time before I get out of here, witch. And when I do I’m going to make you very sorry you ever put me in here.”

“Still issuing useless threats I see,” said McCoy. She turned to Cole. “You asked about where the flu came from. Well, you’re looking at the cause of the flu. Mr. Turner, I’d like to present Patient Zero. The man that infected the entire world with one of the deadliest diseases ever recorded.”

Cole just stared at the man in the cage. Obviously this was Jezic, the demon Cole had been sent to free. But he was being held in a cage that as far as Cole could tell wasn’t even magical. Why didn’t Jezic simply shimmer out of it? Clearly there was more going on in this situation than he had been led to believe.

[noazmale]

SIX

“Patient zero?” questioned Cole. “You mean like the first person identified as having a new disease? That patient zero?”

“One and the same,” said McCoy. “It took me a long time to track him down. But he’s definitely patient zero for the Spanish Flu. I was finally able to capture him and I’ve been keeping him here to see if I can find a cure for the flu. And I’m getting very close.”

“Why keep him here?” questioned Cole. “Why not take him to some place with more advanced equipment? With patient zero they should be able to concoct some type of treatment for the disease.”

“That’s not an option,” said Shoal. “His name is Jezic. And despite his appearance, he’s not human.”

“Jezic is a demon,” added McCoy.

“A demon?” Cole questioned. “Well, that does make a difference. You can’t very well take him to a hospital or anything. That could be dangerous.”

“Not to mention foolhardy,” said McCoy. “In the first place, they’d never believe he’s a demon.”

“So, what have you found?” Cole asked.

“Well, his blood is teaming with the Spanish Flu,” said McCoy. “Only I can’t find any of the normal antibodies associated with a disease. His blood should be filled with antibodies. He doesn’t suffer from the disease and necessitates antibodies.”

“But he doesn’t have any?” questioned Cole.

“Not a single one,” said Shoal. “Elizabeth has theorized that Jezic is a carrier. Someone infected with a disease but doesn’t suffer from it.”

“Which means he exposes it to anyone he comes into contact with,” finished McCoy.

“Worries about a few sick mortals?” Jezic said, a wry smile on his face. “How very human of you.”

“Come on,” said McCoy, heading for the door. “Let’s finish this somewhere else. He’s a demon. My first instinct is to vanquish him.”

“You know you can’t do that in this case,” said Shoal as they left the room. “You’ve told me on many occasions he’s the best chance of finding a cure.”

“Which so far has eluded me,” said McCoy.

“Why?” Cole asked.

“I don’t know,” said McCoy. “There’s something I’m missing. Everything I’ve tried has failed but I know I’m getting close. I just need to find the missing piece of the puzzle. If I could figure out how a demonic disease is infecting humans I might be able to find a cure.”

“I didn’t think humans could be infected with demonic diseases,” said Cole. “My research indicates that demonic and human diseases are distinctively different. It’s like a reptilian disease infecting a mammal.”

“Normally that’s true,” said Shoal. “There aren’t nearly as many demonic disease as there are human disease. But none of them should be capable of infecting humans. Even I’m at a loss to explain how a demonic disease can infect humans.”

“And it’s obviously lethal to humans,” said Cole. “I can’t even begin to guess how many people have died from it so far.”

“Not just humans,” said McCoy. “If my research is correct, the original demonic disease has mutated in Jezic’s body. Somehow his body has changed the original composition of the disease. It can be lethal to humans but if I’m right, it would be even more dangerous to demons. Since the original disease was demonic that means the mutated strain would be even more lethal to demons.”

“Which means we might just have a weapon to fight the demons with,” said Shoal. “If Elizabeth can isolate a cure for it, we can save thousands of humans. And then we can use the disease to infect demons everywhere. It could effectively wipe out the majority of the demonic population.”

“You really think that’s possible?” Cole asked.

“It’s very possible,” said McCoy. “But we can’t even consider that until we find a cure for the humans. Mr. Turner, I realize you’re a journalist. But surely you must realize you can’t write about any of this? It’s too risky to let this information out before I’ve found a cure. If the demons find out what we’re doing here I might never get the chance to finish my research.”

“You’re kidding?” Cole questioned. “This is the story of the century. With Jezic here as proof we can prove demons exist. And with the disease and cure we won’t have to worry about the demons infecting anyone else.”

“And cause all out open warfare between humans and demons,” said Shoal. “Demons leave humans alone because most humans don’t believe in them. And as a witch, Elizabeth has to keep magic a secret from innocents as well. If it became common knowledge, demons would have no reason to remain hidden. And there aren’t enough witches in the entire world to protect the human race from a major demonic onslaught.”

Cole thought for a moment. He all ready knew all this, of course. And he had no intention of exposing Jezic or even McCoy or Shoal to the mortal authorities. But he had to play the part. Finally, he decided that their arguments had “convinced” him.

“Maybe you’re right,” he said finally. “That demon that attacked me had no qualms about killing me. I wouldn’t want to expose anyone else to that. But if you do come up with a cure you’ll need to get it the authorities so they can get it to the infected people. They’re going to want to know how you came up with the cure.”

“He has a point,” said Shoal to McCoy. “The medical community is going to want to see your research to make sure you really do have a cure and to make sure it’s not dangerous to humans.”

“I’ve been thinking about that,” said McCoy. “I’ll admit I haven’t gotten that part worked out yet. I know they’re going to want to see my research. I’m just not sure what I’m going to tell them yet.”

“I can help,” said Cole. “I’m a journalist. I can write it up without any mention of demons. Your report to the medical authorities will look just like ‘normal’ medical research. When you find the cure, you could be looking at a Nobel Prize for Medicine. If I write your story, minus any mention of demons, of course, I could have a shot at a new prize called the Pulitzer. It would go a long way for my career.”

“Maybe,” said McCoy, looking at her watch. “Right now I have to be getting to work. I’m on duty at the emergency room tonight and with this epidemic it seems we have new cases coming in every day. Mr. Turner, you should be relatively safe to return home now. I don’t think that demon is going to come back until it’s sure there’s no one around to protect you.”

“I should really be, uh, checking in as well,” said Shoal. “My, us, boss will be wondering where I’m at.”

“What do you do?” Cole asked, knowing that the “boss” Shoal was referring to was actually the Elders.

“Oh, uh, I work for a charitable institution,” said Shoal. “I’m sure you’ve never heard of them. Anyway, I should be going to.”

“I’ll escort Mr. Turner as far as the hospital,” said McCoy. “Just in case his friend decides to make a reappearance.”

Cole just smiled to himself as he and McCoy left the building. She would be at work most of the night and Shoal would most likely be tied up with the Elders for a while. That would give him the perfect time to shimmer in and have a chat with Jezic. Some things weren’t adding up and he was going to find out why.

“Your limp,” said McCoy as they walked to the hospital. “Did you get that in the war?”

“No,” said Cole. “It’s from a childhood accident. I’m afraid it kept me out of the war. Unfortunately it also prevented me from going overseas and reporting on the war directly. I would have been too much of a detriment to the brave men fighting.

“It’s probably a good thing, though. I’m not sure I would have been able to cut it as a soldier. Oh, I would have liked to have done my part, just as anyone would. But I’m afraid I just don’t have the courage to fight in combat. I’ve never been much of a fighter.”

“Well, from what I’ve heard, that can change very quickly in combat. Many of my patients have told me much the same thing. But somehow they managed to find the courage they needed when the time came. I’m sure you would surprise yourself.”

“Maybe,” said Cole. “But I guess I won’t get the chance. The war is over and everyone is coming home. Hopefully we won’t have to worry about it again for a very long time.”

“I wouldn’t count on that. Humans seem to have a singular knack for getting what they don’t want. No one wants war. But we always seem to find one somewhere.”

“Kind of like fighting demons?” questioned Cole.

“It’s not really the same thing. Demons are bent on subjugating the human race. They’re inherently evil. That’s never going to change. Most human wars are over things that really aren’t that important. Land, money, things like that.”

“What about my offer?” Cole asked. “To write your story once you find a cure? Like I said, I can write it up so there’s no mention of demons. People are going to want to know how you came up with a cure. And to be honest, they have a right to know. Someone has to do it. At least this way you won’t have to lie to anyone or expose what you are to them.”

“I’ll think about it. In the mean time, you need to be very careful. Demons aren’t known for giving up. As long as they see you as a threat, they aren’t going to stop coming after you.”

“Precisely why I’m going to go home and burn everything I’ve collected for my dissertation. Maybe once I do that they’ll see I’m no threat to them and they’ll stop trying to kill me.”

“Here,” said McCoy, handing him a vial. “This is a special potion I worked up. It probably won’t stop a demon but it should slow one down. Maybe give you enough time to get away. If one shows up, just throw it on them. It should distract them long enough for you to get to someplace public. Demons won’t attack as long as there are other innocents around.”

“That’s good to know. I appreciate it. Well, I suppose I should be getting home. I’ll stop by later to find out what your decision is.”

“I’ll see you then, Mr. Turner.”

Cole watched as McCoy entered the hospital where she worked. He continued on down the street until he came to an alley. He looked around and found only a few people on the street, busily making their ways to work. He moved up the alley until he was out of sight of anyone on the street. It was time to start getting some answer. Silently he shimmered out of the alley and headed for the cage where Jezic was being held.”

“I don’t understand,” said Ava. “What does any of this have to do with the disease?”

“I don’t know,” said Piper. “But at least now we know why Leo was affected. The mutated disease is probably magically based. Which means any magical creature could be affected by it. And you heard what McCoy said. It could potentially be more lethal to demons than it is to humans.”

“I’m still no closer to finding out a way to manufacture a cure than I was when this whole vision thing started.”

“Just be patient. I’m sure you’ll get the answer you’re looking for. Sometimes magic doesn’t always take the most direct route.”

Before Ava could respond, she and Piper faded from the alley where Cole had been.

[noazmale]

SEVEN

Cole shimmered into the room where Jezic was being held. He was standing in a dark corner of the room to make sure they were alone. After a moment he decided that Shoal must still be with the Elders. Cautiously he moved up to the cage where Jezic sat.

“What do you want, human?” Jezic spat out at Cole, not even bothering to stand up.

“First of all, I’m not human,” said Cole. “My name is Belthazor. And I’ve been sent to free you.”

“You were with the witch,” said Jezic. “Since when do demons work with witches?”

“I wouldn’t exactly say I was working with her. I figured this was the best way to find out what’s going on and figure out how to free you. Except I’m just a bit confused. This appears to be a normal cage. Why haven’t you just shimmered out?”

“So, Beelzbor sent you to get me,” said Jezic, ignoring Coles question.

“No, Beelzbor didn’t send me. I was hired by the Triad. They’re a bit concerned about what you might have told the witch. My job is to bring you back to them so you can tell them what information you might have passed to her and her White Lighter.”

“The Triad?” questioned Jezic, suddenly becoming very nervous. “Why should the Triad be concerned with me?”

“First, you answer my question,” said Cole. “Why are you sitting in this cage instead of shimmering out?”

“Because I can’t shimmer,” said Jezic. “I didn’t inherit that ability from my father. Nor did I inherit his fireball or I would have just destroyed the lock the first chance I had. I have no way to free myself. I’m as helpless in here as any other human.”

“Any other human?” Cole repeated, finally realizing the implication. “Your father was a demon but your mother was human.”

“That’s right,” said Jezic. “I’m a half breed. But I can pass among humans without suspicion. Or at least I did until the witch showed up. Claiming I had passed some demonic disease on to humans. I don’t know how she found me but before I knew it I was locked in here. And she keeps using me to try and find some cure for this disease.”

“That’s it,” said Ava. “That’s the missing link I’ve been looking for. That’s how he was able to pass a demonic disease to humans.”

“Why?” questioned Piper. “Because he’s half human?”

“Exactly,” said Ava. “I should have thought of that sooner. It explains how a demonic disease can affect humans. When this Jezic contracted the disease, his human DNA must have altered the infection. Being half human would have incorporated human characteristics into the mutated germs. That’s why it can affect humans. It also explains why they had so little success fighting it. They can combat the human aspect of the disease. But they would have virtually no success combating the demonic aspects.”

“Why didn’t they discover this in 1918?” Piper asked.

“DNA wasn’t discovered until 1953 by James D. Watson and Francis Click. They received the Nobel Prize for their discover. But in the early part of the 20th century DNA was unheard of. They wouldn’t even have had the equipment to look for it. It will be decades before it’s discovered and even more decades until there is the right equipment to study it.”

“So Jezic contracts the disease, which to him is nothing more than the common cold. But his body chemistry alters it so it becomes the Spanish Flu. And he’s been infecting anyone he comes into contact with ever since.”

“That’s about the size of it. At least I know what to look for now. The problem is I don’t know how to fight it. I would assume that Shoal tried to use his healing power on the disease like Leo did. Probably with the same results. It’s a demonic based disease so a White Lighter’s healing power is probably useless against it.”

“So why haven’t Shoal or McCoy gotten sick?” Piper asked. “If it’s as contagious as you’ve implied, shouldn’t they have gotten the disease by now?”

“Maybe. There’s no way to know for sure. Maybe they have some kind of natural resistance to it. I don’t know. Maybe there’s some catalyst that makes certain people more susceptible to it. But at least we know where the disease came from. That’s a start.”

“Well,” said Piper, looking around, “the spell hasn’t finished yet. Which means you haven’t gotten all of the information. There’s not much else we can do except wait for the spell to run its’ course.”

“Now, why would the Triad be concerned with what I might have told the witch?” Jezic asked Cole. “I spend most of my time on the mortal plane. I really don’t know that much about demonic activities.”

“They may not be aware of that,” said Cole. “But it’s obvious the witch isn’t interested in any information you might have. She’s more interested in finding a cure for the disease. Which means she’ll keep you alive as long as she feels you can be useful to her.”

“Then get me out of here,” said Jezic. “You did say that’s why you were hired. You can shimmer me out of this cell and away from here.

“Not just yet,” said Cole. “I’m afraid you’ll have to remain where you are for the time being. If what she said is correct, you could be as dangerous to the Underworld as any witch. Just sit tight. I’ll be back soon.”

Without another word Cole shimmered out of the room and into the Underworld. Piper and Ava, caught up in Phoebe’s spell, went with him.

* * *

Cole entered the audience hall for the Triad. Normally he would have been stopped long before he had gotten that far. As with the Source, demons didn’t usually just walk in unannounced. But he was on a major assignment for the Triad. As such he was expected to keep the Triad apprised of his progress. As he entered the chamber, Candor was waiting for him.

“I assume you have news,” said Candor. The look on his face suggested he was confused. “Where is the underling?”

“You mean Jezic?” questioned Cole. “You never told me Jezic was a half breed.”

“Half breed?” questioned Candor. “Beelzbor never mentioned that he was half breed. Only that he was being held by a witch, presumably to garner information regarding the Underworld. It does, however, explain many things. But that does not change the assignment. You were hired to free Jezic. So, where is he?”

“I left him in his cage on the mortal plane. There are matters we need to discuss.”

“I am disappointed in you, Belthazor. You came highly recommended. Even those of the hierarchy such as LaTarrin and Mephistan have had high praise for the work you did for them. I had expected as much when I hired you. It seems that the praise is unwarranted. You cannot even free one simple half breed from a witch.”

“Oh, I could have freed him all right,” replied Cole. “But like I said, there are matters we need to discuss. There have been some developments that you should be made aware of.”

“What developments?”

“You may be aware that there is a disease that is currently afflicting humans. They call it the Spanish Flu. It can be quite lethal to humans and as of yet they have found no cure and little treatment for it.”

“I have heard some mention of this. But why should we care? This is a human disease. It is of no concern to demons.”

“It should be. Jezic is the cause of the disease. The Spanish Flu is a mutated form of a demonic disease. Because he is half human his body has somehow mutated the disease so that it also affects humans.”

“Again, not a concern for us. If the disease had been dangerous to demons Jezic would not have survived it. Besides, if it has mutated to affect humans, here again, it is not a concern for the Underworld.”

“Then you’d be wrong. The witch holding him is a medical doctor. She says the mutation is enough to affect demons as well. In fact, because the original disease was demonic in nature, it would be even more virulent against demons. Because Jezic is half human and half demon, his body has produced a disease that is lethal to both. Apparently he is immune to the disease itself but he is a carrier. Which means he can infect anyone he comes into contact with, human or demon.”

“This does change the complexion of the situation some,” replied Candor thoughtfully.

“Some?” questioned Cole. “It changes everything. Imagine a demon infected with the disease that comes to the Underworld. He would infect every other demon he came into contact with. They, in turn, would affect others. The Underworld would very quickly find itself suffering from the same epidemic that now rages on the mortal plane. And because we are beings of magic, we do not have the resources to combat such a disease. Very quickly it could decimate the entire Underworld.”

“I think you overestimate the situation. Those of us at the higher levels of the hierarchy would most likely be immune to such a disease. The power of our magic would protect us.”

“That could be a foolish mistake,” said Cole.

“You dare call me a fool? You are nothing more than a mercenary. Someone hired to do my bidding. You should be more careful in your choice of words. I have vanquished underlings for less.”

“Forgive me, I meant no insolence. And I did not mean to imply you were foolish. Only that your assumption could be foolish. The natural arrogance of most demons can often lead them to make assumptions that are flawed. I am the 4th demon to try and rescue Jezic. It was assumed that my 3 previous predecessors could do it and that assumption proves false.”

“I can assure you this is no assumption. The hierarchy has the power to resist even the most aggressive assailant. Regardless of who – or what – that assailant is.”

“And what if it doesn’t?” Cole asked. “Diseases have no rationale. They don’t consider such things as status and power. But let’s assume you’re right. Let’s assume that upper level demons would be immune. What of the lower ranks? The ones that make up the rank and file of the Underworld? It could sweep through them like a wildfire, as the humans say. Very quickly the hierarchy could find itself without any underlings to do their bidding. What do you do then?”

“I had not considered that. It would appear you are correct. This is a concern for the hierarchy. I must assemble the rest of the Triad. The Source must be made aware of this development. We must decide what we will do about it.”

“I have a suggestion. We let the witch finish her work. She claims to be very close to coming up with a cure. Once she has found the cure, we can then use it to cure the human population of the disease.”

“You show concern for humans?”

“Only because if a demon encounters an infected human, they could be infected. The best way to protect the Underworld is to get rid of the disease so no one can be infected.”

“We could simply keep the cure with us,” suggested Candor. “Let the humans suffer from this disease. If we have the cure we need not worry about any demons who might be infected.”

“Except it could mutate again. If that happens the cure may not be effective. We’d be in the same situation we are right now. With the millions that are currently infected it is very possible the disease could go through another mutation. The best way to protect the Underworld, and the hierarchy, is to make sure this disease is no longer a threat to anyone.”

Candor thought for a moment. He had no love for humans. As far as he was concerned they were little more than chattel for demons to do with as they pleased. But Cole was also right. As certain as he was that the hierarchy would be unaffected by this disease, he had been proven wrong before.

“What of Jezic?” Candor finally asked. “The longer the witch has him the more she can learn from him. And her White Lighter, in turn, will inform their Elders of what she learns. Leaving him in captivity with her is an unacceptable risk.”

“The witch isn’t interested in what Jezic knows. She’s using him as a guinea pig for her experiments. He was the source of this new disease and she feels he is the best chance of finding a cure. Her only concern with him is his usefulness in her experiments. She hasn’t even questioned him.”

“I see. So he is not a threat to the Underworld?”

“Not at the moment,” said Cole. “That could change. Once she’s found a cure for the disease, she may decide to keep him around and see what she can learn from him. But I’ll make sure that doesn’t happen. Once she’s found the cure, I’ll make sure Jezic is no longer her captive. And I’ll also deal with her and her White Lighter as well.”

“Very well. But remain close to them. As long as Jezic is her captive it is possible he can still pose a threat to the Underworld. He may be a simple underling but even underlings could have information that would be useful to our enemies. We cannot allow that information to be passed to them no matter how insignificant it might seem.”

“I’m aware of that,” said Cole. “And as I said, I’ll make sure that doesn’t happen. So far the witch’s interest in Jezic has been confined to his usefulness in her medical experiments. I’ll make sure it doesn’t go any further than that.”

“I may have misjudged you. When you first told me you had failed to release Jezic I naturally assumed you had failed. I will inform the rest of the Triad and the Source of what you have told me. And I will have a discussion with Beezlbor. He should have told me his underling was a half breed to begin with. Return to me when you have completed the assignment.”

“As you wish,” said Cole, bowing to Candor.

The senior demon flamed out of the chamber. Cole stood in the center of the chamber thinking for a moment, and then suddenly shimmered and vanished. Piper and Ava also vanished from the chamber as Phoebe’s spell carried them to the next part of the vision.

[noazmale]

EIGHT

Cole shimmered into what appeared to be a modest frame house. From the décor it was obvious it was home to a woman. It was the type of house most people didn’t give a second look at as they drove past it. It appeared to be empty at the moment. It was dark, save for the glow of a light coming from underneath one of the doors leading to another room.

“Knock, knock,” Cole called out, loud enough so that whoever was in the adjoining room would hear him. “You have a visitor.”

The door opened and a blonde stepped out with a towel wrapped around her. She had a second towel in her hands and was obviously drying her hair. It was clear she had just stepped out of the shower.

“Well, well, look who’s here,” said the woman, walking up to Cole. She kissed Cole on the lips. “Haven’t seen you in a while, lover. You decide finally take me up on my offer and take a vacation here?”

“Hello, Angelique,” said Cole, looking around the house. “Very cozy. This is a nice place. But I would have thought for someone with your financial means you’d have something a bit more elegant.”

“It suits my needs,” said Angelique. “Besides, I don’t really spend that much time here. You’re lucky you caught me. I was about to head to Phoenix. Apparently there’s a problem out there I could help with.”

“Well, that’s why I’m here,” said Cole. “Forget about Phoenix. Whatever it is can’t be as important as what I have for you.”

“You want to hire me?” questioned Angelique. “Not the first time. I assume you have a White Lighter you want taken care of. That is my specialty, after all.”

“As a matter of fact,” said Cole. “First I need to fill you in on the specifics. When I’m finished I think you’ll agree this is much more important than whatever you have in mind in Phoenix.”

“Just let me throw something on,” said Angelique. “This sounds like it might take a while.”

“That’s Angelique,” Piper said to Ava. “She’s a Dark Lighter. We met her once. My guess is Cole is hiring her to kill Shoal. He can’t do it. Only the poison from a Dark Lighter’s arrow can kill a White Lighter.”

“Not counting the new disease, of course,” replied Ava. “Leo’s infected so obviously the disease can affect White Lighter’s as well. This is taking a lot of time. I’m afraid once I’ve learned what I need to know it may be too late to do anything to help Leo.”

“There’s not much we can do about it,” said Piper. “There’s nothing we can do until the spell has run its’ course. Until then all we can do is watch and see what we can learn.”

* * *

Cole peered through a window of the building where McCoy was doing her research. It was a gamble but he had to find out where she was at that stage of her research. If he knew how close she was he might be able to prod her in the right direction. But first he had to find out how close she was to actually coming up with a cure.

“Another failure,” said McCoy as she peered into a microscope. “I just don’t understand it. Nothing seems to work. I know I’m close. There has to be some catalyst that will allow the cure to work. I just can’t figure out what it might be.”

“Well,” said Shoal, “we know my healing ability doesn’t work. I never really thought it would. It’s a demonic disease. It won’t heal those. And I’ve tried using my healing on your potions thinking the healing might be incorporated into them. But we’ve failed at every turn. You may just have to face facts and admit there is no cure.”

“I don’t believe that. There’s a cure. I just have to find something that will interact with Jezic’s demonic nature. We know the disease started with him. So we know that demons can be infected. But I still don’t understand how it could have jumped to humans. That shouldn’t be possible.”

“You’ve told me many times that any living organism can be affected by disease,” replied Shoal. “Demons are a living organism only they’re distinctively different from humans. Do you think demons might have deliberately created this disease? To kill off humans?”

“I doubt it. As I told Mr. Turner, the mutated disease would be even deadlier to demons than it would be to humans. I can’t see anyone creating a disease that would be more dangerous to their own kind than to their enemies. Too much chance of it getting out of control. And you’ve told me that since demons don’t suffer from most physical ailments they don’t spend a whole lot of time researching them.”

“That’s certainly true. There are a few healer demons in the Underworld but they normally only serve the most powerful masters. But not even they would be concerned with a disease that affects humans. And they have remedies for the ones that affect demons. What about Turner? He said he had done a lot of research into demons. Maybe he’s found something that might be useful.”

“He was only doing a comparative analysis,” replied McCoy. “Probably comparing demons from different cultures and religions with each other. I seriously doubt he’s discovered anything that would be of use. And he did say he was going to destroy all of his research. So that the demons would stop coming after him.”

“Well, they might lay low for a while but I doubt they’ll stop. Once a demon decides to kill someone they rarely change their mind. It’s a shame Jezic isn’t talking. He might actually have some information we could use.”

“I don’t think we could trust anything he says anyway. Demons are notoriously unreliable. But I think his usefulness is just about at an end. Until I find the catalyst that will effect a cure I think I’ve learned as much as I can from him with this little lab. Keeping him around is much too risky. It’s only a matter of time before someone discovers we have him here. And that could cause more trouble than he’s worth.”

“Are you thinking of vanquishing him?” Shoal asked.

“I don’t see any other option. We certainly can’t let him go. We both knew we’d have to vanquish him eventually. I have all the results of the test I ran on him. I think it’s about time we got rid of him. He is a demon, after all. If he should get free, that could complicate matters drastically.”

“You’re right. And it will mean one less demon you’ll have to worry about.”

Demon, thought Cole. They kept referring to Jezic as a demon, not as a half breed. Which meant they probably didn’t know he was half human. That was something Cole had experience with. Although he didn’t broadcast the fact that he was half human, he never denied it either. Perhaps McCoy and Shoal thought that he was a full demon. If they knew he was half human that might help with the research.

Cole left his hiding place by the window and walked around the side of the building. McCoy had to find out that Jezic was half human. The tricky part would be how she found out. He couldn’t just come right out and tell her. That would be much too suspicious. Somehow he had to find a way to make her think it was her idea. And he had to do it fast. If they vanquished Jezic before she “realized” he was half human their only chance for a cure could be gone forever.

[noazmale]

NINE

Cole waited almost an hour before returning to the lab. He knew it was risky. If they decided to vanquish Jezic his plans would be useless. But he didn’t feel he had any choice. If he had suddenly appeared right after their conversation it might look suspicious to them. After all, things like that rarely happened in real life.

As he entered the building he found McCoy studying the results of her latest test. Shoal was apparently stacking some supplies in one corner. Cole limped into the building, perpetuating the illusion of his “childhood injury”.

“Find anything useful?” he asked, smiling as he hobbled up to the lab table where McCoy.

“Not really,” she replied. “Nothing seems to work. I’m getting close, I know it. I just can’t seem to get it right. Any trouble with demons?”

Cole held up the potion she had given him.

“Not so far,” he replied. “With any luck, I’ve seen the last of them. I’ve destroyed all my notes and research. Now there’s nothing to threaten them. Once they learn that I’m hoping they’ll just forget about me.”

“Don’t get too restful,” said Shoal. “They might not be as understanding as you think.”

“Well, I still have this,” said Cole, holding up the vial again. “And I’m sure I can count on Dr. McCoy to help out if I get in a pinch.”

“I’ll do what I can,” said McCoy. “But I may not always be around. You still need to be very careful.”

“Oh, I will be,” said Cole. “I have no desire to meet anymore demons. Speaking of which, how is your ‘guest’ doing?”

“Resting quietly,” replied McCoy.

“For a change,” added Shoal. “He’s usually trying to figure some way out of his cage. He can cause quite a racket, let me tell you.”

“I hope he’s secure,” said Cole, feigning fear. “If he gets out I shudder to think what he might do.”

“He’s secure enough,” said McCoy. “That cage is very sturdy.”

“And I’m sure you’ve put some kind of holding spell on it to keep him in it as well,” said Cole.

“Not really,” said McCoy. “The cage seems to be enough.”

“You mean he can’t just disappear like the one that attacked me did?” questioned Cole. “That seems rather odd. I just assumed that all demons could do that.”

“Many can,” said Shoal. “It’s called shimmering. But not all demons can shimmer. In fact, many of the lower level ones can’t. It’s like fireballs. Many demons can cast fireballs. But some can only cast energy balls. They can be just as dangerous but it varies from demon to demon.”

“Really?” Cole feigned ignorance. “I didn’t know that. In fact, my research really wasn’t concentrated in that area. I was researching demons in different religious and cultural beliefs and how they compared to each other. I must admit to being somewhat surprised when they turned out to look just like humans. Most of my research indicated that they had some pretty hideous forms.”

“That’s probably their natural forms,” said Shaol. “Many demons, especially higher level ones, have a human form as well. It allows them to better blend in with human societies.”

“Really? My research did indicate that many demons appeared human. But I never knew they could change back and forth like that. Do they still retain their demonic powers in human form?”

“Usually,” said McCoy. “In some cases, the powers effectiveness is reduced. But they usually still retain whatever powers or abilities they are born with, even in human form.”

“So this Jezic still has whatever demonic powers he was born with?” questioned Cole. “Even though he’s in what you call his ‘human form’?”

“Probably,” said McCoy. “Although we really don’t know what powers or abilities he might have. So far, he hasn’t used any that we know of.”

“Then how do you know he’s a demon?” Cole asked.

“Elizabeth’s tests have proven that,” said Shoal. “For whatever reason, he’s chosen not to use his powers. Probably because he doesn’t have any offensive powers. Some demons don’t. He’s probably some kind of messenger or errand boy or something like that. Demons without offensive powers usually work for higher level demons doing menial tasks.”

“But that would seem to indicate that he’s relatively low level,” said Cole. “Didn’t you say that the lower level demons didn’t have a human form?”

“That’s right,” said McCoy. “They rarely come to the mortal plane so they have no need to blend in with human societies.”

“So this Jezic is a low level demon, with no offensive powers, but a human form,” said Cole thoughtfully. “That sounds a bit odd to me. But then I’m not an expert of demons or witches. I suppose it all seems perfectly normal to you.”

“You know,” said Shoal, “I never thought of it in that way before. It does seem odd that he’d have a human form but no offensive powers. We’ve been so centered on his usefulness in curing the disease it never occurred to me that he might be more than just some errand boy.”

“You know,” said McCoy, “it just occurred to me that we don’t even know what type of demon Jezic is. When I discovered he was patient zero I was so excited about the possibility of using him to find a cure I never even considered what type he might be.”

“Type?” questioned Cole. “There are different types of demons?”

“Quite a few, actually,” said Shoal. “Many of them have specific abilities that make them suitable for specific functions. For instance a Shaper Demon. They can change the configuration of their body and become any inanimate object they want. They can’t change into another living creature but they can shape shift into any object of approximately the same size and mass.”

“You mean my cane could actually be one of these Shaper Demons?” Cole questioned, looking suspiciously at his cane.

“It could, but I doubt one has,” said McCoy. “If it had it would probably have attacked you long ago.”

“Oh, there’s a pleasant thought,” said Cole. “That virtually any object I come across could actually be a demon.”

“I wouldn’t worry about it too much,” said Shoal. “Shaper Demons are usually used for a specific task against a specific target. The rest of the time they sit around waiting for some higher level demon to summon them.”

“Reminds me of my half brother,” Cole joked.

“Half brother?” Shoal asked.

“Yes,” said Cole. “We had the same father but different mothers. Most of the time he sits around doing nothing. Until he decides he wants something, like cigarettes or something to drink. Then he gets a job and earns what money he needs. Then he just stops working.”

“Half brother,” said Shoal, a note of recognition in his voice.

“Martin, what is it?” McCoy asked. “You sound like you just realized something.”

“Maybe I have,” said Shoal. “There’s another type of demon that could have a human form but have very limited powers. A half breed.”

“You mean a demon/human hybrid?” McCoy questioned. “You once told me that they were practically useless to the Underworld. Most of them don’t have any significant power.”

“That’s true,” said Shoal. “But they do have one distinct difference. They’re half human.”

“Half breed?” Cole questioned. “Isn’t that a bit harsh?”

“Maybe by human standards,” said Shoal. “But it’s the name that demons have given to human/demon hybrids. Half breeds are the offspring of one human parent and one demonic parent. They aren’t very common but they do exist.”

“Half human, half demon?” questioned Cole. “Is that even possible? I thought different species couldn’t mate with any effectiveness?”

“They can’t,” said McCoy. “But there are some examples. The mule, for instance. They’re the result of crossing a donkey with a horse. But they are always sterile, unable to reproduce themselves.”

“And humans and demons can reproduce with each other,” said Shoal. “The offspring isn’t necessarily sterile but the result is usually human-like with some kind of residual powers of the demonic parent. Not nearly as powerful as the demonic parent but still retaining some of the powers or abilities.”

“Wait a minute,” said McCoy. “Oh my God. That has to be the answer.”

“What?” Cole asked. “The answer to what?”

“How a demonic disease could affect humans,” said McCoy. “Theoretically, a half breed would be susceptible to both human and demonic diseases. If one should be infected with a human disease, the demonic part would most likely overwhelm the disease and destroy it.”

“But if the half breed should somehow become infected with a demonic disease,” said Shoal.

“The human half would be too weak to destroy it,” continued McCoy. “Even the demonic half wouldn’t be able to completely fight off the infection. But it might weaken it enough so that the human half could effectively alter it.”

“Causing a mutated disease capable of affecting both humans and demons,” finished Shoal. “Because the original disease was demonic in nature, the mutated disease would affect humans. But as Elizabeth said, it would be more dangerous to demons.”

“This puts a whole new spin on the situation,” said McCoy. “We need to find out if Jezic is actually half human.”

She turned from the table and headed for the door of the room where Jezic was being held. Cole didn’t move. He couldn’t afford to see Jezic again just yet. Jezic might accidentally reveal that Cole was also demon. If that happened, all of Cole’s preparations and plans would be wasted. McCoy threw the door opened and virtually stormed into the room.

“You’re a half breed, aren’t you?” she demanded of Jezic.

“I told you before, witch, you’ll get nothing out of me,” replied the demon. “But I do promise you that I’m going to make your death particularly long and painful when I get out of this cage. And I will get out, make no mistake about that. It’s just a matter of time.”

“Well, if you’re not a half breed, why haven’t you shimmered out of the cage?” McCoy asked. “There are no magical protections on the cage. If you’re a full demon you should have no trouble shimmering out.”

“How little you know about us,” smiled Jezic. “Not all demons have the same abilities. But we do have friends. Friends who are going to come looking for me sooner or later. It won’t be long before those friends will come looking for me. And you have no idea what trouble many of my friends can cause for you. Before we kill you.”

McCoy left the room and walked over to a machine that sat against one wall. She began to manipulate several of the controls on the machine. When she was finished she pushed a button on the machine and Cole could hear a hissing sound coming from the cage where Jezic was being held.

“What’s that?” Cole asked nervously.

“Relax,” said Shoal. “It’s just a sedative Elizabeth uses to sedate Jezic. We have to sedate him when we need to get biological samples from him. As you can imagine he’s not exactly cooperate with us.”

“Oh, I see,” said Cole. “Won’t the sedative affect you when you go into that room?”

“It dissipates pretty quickly once it’s released into the air,” said McCoy. “But not before it affects Jezic. It will keep him unconscious long enough for us to do what we have to.” She reached into a desk draw and pulled out an athame.

“What are you planning?” Cole asked.

“I’m going to find out if Jezic is full demon or a half breed,” said McCoy. “Martin, I’m going to need your help on this. Mr. Turner, you should wait out here.”

“No problem there,” said Cole. “I have no desire to be around any demon anymore than I have to.”

Cole just watched as McCoy and Shoal walked into the room where Jezic was being held captive.

[noazmale]

TEN

Cole watched covertly as McCoy and Shoal entered the cage where Jezic was being held. Jezic lay on the floor unconscious from the gas McCoy had used. As Cole watch, McCoy knelt down and used the athame to make a cut on Jezic’s forearm.

“Heal him,” she whispered to Shoal.

“I can’t. You know that. My healing ability won’t affect demons.”

“If I’m right, this should work. If he’s a full demon nothing will happen. But if I’m right, you should be able to heal his human half. So you need to heal him and see how much, if any, will work on him.”

“Interesting theory,” said Ava as she and Piper watched the events. “I guess theoretically it could be possible.”

“More than theoretically,” said Piper. “I’ve seen it happen. Cole was injured once and we thought he was dying. Leo used his healing power and was only able to partially heal Cole. That was before we knew Cole was a demon. At first Leo was confused why he couldn’t completely heal Cole.”

“That’s good to know,” said Ava. “So Elizabeth is going to see if Martin can heal Jezic to find out if he’s half human. That’s pretty inventive.”

“And it should work,” said Piper.

They watched as Shoal held his hand over the cut on Jezic’s cut. He activated his healing power and a soft yellow glow covered Jezic’s arm. After a moment the glow stopped and Shoal looked up at McCoy.

“I can’t heal him completely,” whispered Shoal. “But I was able to heal part of him. He has to be a half breed. If he were fully demon my healing power wouldn’t have had any effect.”

McCoy and Shoal turned and left the room. When they enter the main room Cole appeared to be looking over some of McCoy’s notes. As they entered the room he turned to them.

“Just thought I’d get a head start on the report to the medical authorities,” he said. “I hope you don’t mind.”

“Not at all,” replied McCoy. “Well, we’ve confirmed that Jezic is half human. That opens up some new possibilities. I’ve been attacking the problem as if it were simply a mutated demonic disease that affects humans. Since we now know that Jezic is also half human I have an idea for something that just might work.”

“What do you need?” Shoal asked.

“A few hours alone,” replied McCoy. “Mr. Turner, under the circumstance I think it’s best if you leave. My research can be dangerous and I’d feel very bad if anything should happen. I’m sure you understand.”

“Well, yeah, I guess so,” said Cole nervously. “You have to work with a strain of the Spanish Flu to see if your idea works. Can’t say I’d be very comfortable hanging around while you work with that. I’ll just let myself out. I’ll come back later. When it’s safer.”

Cole turned and hobbled out of the building. He quickly moved around to the same window he had used before to eavesdrop on McCoy and Shoal. As he peered in the window he saw McCoy remove a syringe from a desk drawer.

“I need a sample of your blood,” she said. “Then I need you to get me a blood sample from Jezic while he’s still unconscious.”

“What good will my blood do?” Shoal asked. “We all ready know my healing power won’t work on the disease. I’ve tried several times. It’s always failed.”

“What I have in mind just might work. We’ve been trying to use your healing power on the disease but obviously that won’t work. But we’ve been trying to cure the disease from the outside, so to speak. I think I can create a potion that will attack it from the inside. But for that I need some of your blood. Your innate healing ability should bond with the cure allowing it to affect the disease.”

“I think it’s a long shot,” said Shoal. “I don’t see how it’s going to make a difference.”

“Your body is essentially a modified human body. If I can separate the human components from the blood I should have what essentially makes you a White Lighter. Your White Lighter essence, if you will. I can combine that with the cure I’ve been working on as the basis for a new potion. I’m pretty sure that will fight this disease.”

“I don’t see how that’s going to make a difference,” said Shoal. “I don’t see any difference between that and my trying to heal someone.”

“That’s because you’re not a doctor. Trust me on this one. The approach is going to work, I can feel it. Now, I need that blood sample from you. And I need a fresh sample from Jezic. If it works on him it should work on anyone who is infected with the disease as well.”

Shoal just shrugged and began to roll up his sleeve so McCoy could take the blood sample.

“She may be on to something,” Ava said. “Her approach could very well provide a cure for the disease. She’s right when she says it will fight the disease from the inside. And the White Lighter essence as part of the base of the potion will make it effective even against magical beings.”

“So she actually has a shot at finding a cure,” said Piper.

“If she can distill the White Lighter essence from Martin, yes, I think she does. Which means I can use the same approach with the disease today. If her approach works I can use the same technique to create a potion for what Leo has.”

“Well, I guess we’ll just have to wait and see if she’s successful.”

As Piper and Ava waited to see if McCoy’s approach was going to work, they silently faded from the building.

* * *

“So, that’s your entire plan?” Angelique questioned Cole. “I just dark orb in and kill the White Lighter? I expected more from you, Cole. You’re becoming something of a legend with your elaborate plans. I thought there’d be more to it than that.”

“Oh, trust me, there is,” said Cole. “That’s just your part of the plan. As I said, the Triad wants to make sure the witch and the White Lighter are dealt with so they can’t pass on any information they may have learned from Jezic to their Elders.”

“But you said Jezic hadn’t told them anything.”

“And you’ve never had anyone lie to you? Besides, the witch has been doing experiments on Jezic. She’s trying to find a cure for the Spanish Flu but there’s no telling what else she might have learned. Anything she may have learned about demon physiology could be potentially dangerous.”

“Well, that’s certainly true. You realize I’m still going to insist on full payment. Even if you are special.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” replied Cole, smiling at her. “This is business. The second rule of being a mercenary. Business is business. Never let personal relationships interfere with the job.”

“Something I learned from you, lover. Of course, once the business is concluded that rule no longer applies.”

“Okay. We’ll only have one chance at this. Don’t waste any time. Dark orb in and shoot the White Lighter immediately. While the witch is distracted with you, I’ll strike. It could be dangerous. She has a rather formidable sonic attack. Lorsch found that out the hard way.”

“Lorsch? You hired him? Why would you hire him to help you? He’s not exactly one of the top mercenaries.”

“I just needed him to complete a minor job for me. And he did fine. Because of his ‘attack’ on me the witch thought I was just another innocent. She came to my rescue immediately. Lorsch was a little the worse for wear for his ordeal but he’ll survive. And he was paid quite well for his services.”

“So, when do you want to do this?”

“I have to wait for the witch to come up with a cure to the disease first. Without it, the entire Underworld is at risk. This disease has spread all over the world. If she’s successful, she’ll need to make enough of the potion to cure everyone. And we’ll need to get some of it to take to the Underworld.”

“Enough potion to cure everyone in the world?” questioned Angelique. “I’m not sure she’ll be capable of that with that little lab she has. It would have to be mass produced. That’s going to take some major facilities. Any idea how long it will be before she’s come up with this cure?”

“It shouldn’t be long,” said Cole. “She’s all ready got an idea about how to produce the cure. I think in a few hours she’ll have what she needs. That’s when we’ll strike. You’ll have to be standing by so you can Dark Orb in when I give the signal.”

“And just what is the signal?”

“I’ll run my fingers through my hair,” said Cole, demonstrating for her. “I’ll be standing next to a window so you can see me. I’ll make sure the White Lighter is on the other side of the room when I do. So you’ll need to Dark Orb in there. When you do, the witch will obviously notice you. She’ll turn to engage you to protect her White Lighter. When she does I’ll be able to strike with total surprise.”

“Very efficient. You kill the witch, I kill the White Lighter, and you free Jezic in one fell swoop. And you get the cure to boot. So, why waste it on the humans? Why not just take it to the Underworld so that they’ll have the cure against this disease?”

“That’s not an option. Diseases have a tendency to mutate in humans. If it mutates, the cure may not be effective on it. We have to make sure the disease is no longer a threat. In order to do that we have to make sure the humans are cured of it. I have no love for humans but in this instance the best way to protect the Underworld is to make sure the humans are protected as well.”

“Okay. It seems you’ve thought of everything. And once the witch and White Lighter are dead we release Jezic.”

“I’ll take care of Jezic. He’s my assignment, after all. You just worry about the White Lighter. And avoid the witch, if you can. Like you said, once the assignment is over, the rules of my profession no longer apply. When we’re finished I plan to take a vacation in a place called Acapulco. And I would definitely like some company on that vacation.”

“Well,” said Angelique, putting her arms around Cole’s neck, “that sounds like a lot of fun.”

“Not now,” said Cole, pulling her arms down. “When the job is finished. Not before.”

“My, you do take your profession seriously.”

“As serious as you take yours. Now, you need to get in place so you’ll be ready. Once I give the signal don’t waste any time. Dark orb in and take out the White Lighter. Then I can finish the witch.”

“I’ll see you there,” said Angelique. She dark orbed out of the building.

“We need to warn Elizabeth and Martin,” said Ava. “We can’t just let him kill them. They won’t be expecting it.”

“We can’t,” said Piper. “Remember, we aren’t really here. This is just a vision. Kind of like a movie, I guess. They can’t even see or hear us. Besides, they both died over 80 years ago. So we have no chance of saving them.”

“It doesn’t seem right. Still, the lives of millions of people are at stake. I just wish there was something we could do, that’s all.”

“So do I,” said Piper. “But there isn’t. So we just need to watch and find out what Elizabeth does to create the cure. Leo is one of those millions. And I don’t want to be a widow so soon after my wedding.”

Silently the two faded from the room, moving on to the next phase of the vision.

[noazmale]

ELEVEN

It was nearly sunrise when Cole hobbled back into the lab. He had deliberately waited until the next morning to make sure McCoy had enough time to come up with the cure. Even then he wasn’t sure she would have been able to.

“How’s it going?” he asked.

“Great,” said McCoy, smiling from ear to ear. “I think I’ve found a cure. It didn’t take long and when I tested it on some samples of the disease, it all but eradicated it.”

“That’s great,” said Cole.

“Yes,” said Shoal. “But as Elizabeth pointed out to me, that was in a laboratory under controlled conditions. There was no guarantee it would work the same way on the general populace.”

“So I had Martin locate three people who were very ill from the flu,” continued McCoy. “One intravenous injection and they began to improve immediately. Martin just checked on them and they’re all expected to make a full recovery.”

“That’s incredible,” said Cole. “I’ve never heard of anything that works that fast.”

“Well,” said McCoy, hesitantly, “I did a few things that a ‘normal’ lab wouldn’t be able to do.” She reached under a table and pulled out a large bottle filled with a bluish-white liquid. “If I’m correct, there should be enough serum in here to cure almost everyone who’s infected with the flu.”

“In that one bottle?” Cole questioned. “Millions of people are infected. How do you expect that one small bottle to cure everyone?”

“The potion I created,” said McCoy, glancing at Shoal, “it’s sort of self-replicating. It should affect anything it’s introduced to. A small sample in the drinking water in an affected area should be enough to spread throughout the water supply. Anyone drinking the water would also drink the cure.”

“I’ve never heard of anything like that,” said Cole. “How were you able to accomplish something like that?”

“I’m afraid I can’t answer that, Mr. Turner,” said McCoy, glancing at Shoal again. “And I’m afraid you won’t be able to write about this. There would be no way for the mortal world to replicate the serum. The base ingredients are . . . unusual. And there would be too many questions I wouldn’t be able to answer for them.”

Cole had a good idea what she was referring to. White Lighters were immortal. Which means their bodies were constantly renewing the damage caused by the passage of time. Their essence should have the same effect on the water supply it’s introduced into. A small sample would transform the water around it. That water will, in turn, transform the water around it and so forth. But even a diluted form of the cure would be helpful.

“Are you sure it’s self-replicating?” Cole asked.

McCoy took out a small glass and filled it with water. Then she used an eye dropper and dropped a single drop of the cure into the glass. Within seconds the entire glass was no longer clear water but the same bluish-white as the cure.

“It will probably take longer for people to be cured this way,” she said. “The potion will be somewhat diluted. But it will still work. The problem is getting the potion to the drinking water in all the infected areas. That’s going to take some time. But shortly after that the plague should begin to abate. Eventually it should be eradicated all together.”

“Is this the formula?” Cole asked, picking up several sheets of paper from the table.

Ava moved over and looked at the papers Cole was holding. She was unable to touch them but she tried to study them as carefully as she could.

“This is somewhat complicated,” Ava said. “I’m not sure I’ll be able to remember it all. But at least it’s a start. I think I know what process Elizabeth was using to create the cure. With a little luck, it shouldn’t take long for me to duplicate her work.”

“I hope Leo has enough time,” said Piper. “We don’t know how long he has left or how long it will take to create the cure.”

“I’ll work as fast as I can,” Ava promised. “As soon as this vision ends and I can get to work.”

“It shouldn’t be long,” replied Piper. “You got what we came here for. The spell should end very shortly.”

“Yes, it’s the formula for the cure,” said McCoy, reaching over and taking the papers from Cole. “I’m afraid I can’t have you looking at that. There are still a many great things about the magical world you aren’t aware of. Things that could put you in as much danger as the demonic thesis you were working on.”

“Oh, I understand,” said Cole, casually hobbling over to a nearby window. He looked out at the newly rising sun. “And I understand about not being able to write an article about it. After all, you aren’t going to be able to tell the medical authorities of your cure. So there’s not going to be the need to explain how you came up with the cure.”

“Exactly,” said McCoy.

“What about Jezic?” Cole asked. “Will the potion cure him?”

“I’m afraid not,” said McCoy. “Technically, he’s not sick so there’s nothing to cure. That’s the way carriers are. They don’t suffer from the disease themselves but they spread the germs to everyone they come into contact with. Besides, it really wouldn’t matter. He’s served his usefulness. There’s really no reason to keep him around any longer.”

“I suppose you’re right,” said Cole, running his fingers through his hair. “Even with the cure he could still reinfect people. And since White Lighter’s can’t cure the disease, you can’t risk having him around for that, now can you?”

“White Lighters?” questioned Shoal. “How do you know about White Lighters?”

Suddenly Angelique dark orbed into the building. She was on the opposite side of the room from Cole and standing just a few feet away from Shoal. As she dark orbed in, McCoy and Shoal reflexively turned to look at her. She raised her crossbow and pointed it at Shoal.

“Dark Lighter,” Shoal gasped as Angelique fired. The bolt from the crossbow struck him in the chest and he immediately fell to the floor gasping for air.

As Shoal fell to the floor, McCoy brought her hands up. She was obviously going to use her power to stop Angelique. She never got the chance. As he hands came up, Cole pulled on the head of the cane he had been using to walk with. It slid out easily revealing the athame he traditionally used to kill his victims with.

Before McCoy could activate her power Cole plunged the athame in her back. He was confident she would never use her power. He had spent countless hours studying human anatomy from every possible angle. He knew exactly where to strike so that his victim would die almost instantly. Or so that they would suffer before they died.

In this instance he preferred that she died quickly. McCoy fell against the table and tried to steady herself for a moment and then suddenly fell to the floor. She lay on the floor motionless. Cole knew she was dead before she hit the floor. Shoal, still gasping for air, tried to reach out to McCoy.

“Save your breath, White Lighter,” said Angelique, causing her crossbow to vanish. “You’ll be joining her momentarily.”

Shoal gasped one last time and lay on the floor motionless. His blank eyes stared directly ahead.

“Well, that went rather smoothly,” said Cole, picking up the papers with the formula for the potion on it. “I’m going to take this with me. In case the potion isn’t as effective as McCoy thought it would be. I know a couple of alchemists who should be able to duplicate her work if it becomes necessary.”

“What about the potion?” Angelique asked. “How are you going to get it to all the people that are infected? Not even you can shimmer all over the world that fast.”

“Oh, that’s the easy part,” said Cole. “Divide the cure up among a few demons and have them do it. I’m sure the Triad will agree. I’ve all ready told them how dangerous this disease is. By the way.” He picked up the glass McCoy had used to demonstrate the potion and handed it to Angelique. “You’d better drink this. You’ve been exposed.”

“You don’t really think I’m at risk, do you?”

“There’s no way to tell. Better safe than sorry, as they say. Come on. Drink up. What’s the old adage? An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

“Benjamin Franklin,” responded Angelique, taking the glass. “You know, he was much shorter than most people realize.”

“Drink,” Cole ordered.

Angelique put the glass to her lips and drained the contents. As she put the empty glass on the table a look of utter disgust crossed her face.

“What’s in that?” she asked. “It’s utterly disgusting.”

“Well, essence of White Lighter for one thing,” said Cole, smiling. “Don’t worry. You should be fine.”

“What about you? Shouldn’t you take the cure, too?”

“I don’t think there’s any need to. Jezic is half human and he’s immune to the disease. Which means other half human half demon hybrids will probably also be immune. I’ll keep a small amount just in case. But I don’t think I have anything to worry about. Now, we’d better get to Jezic.”

“That’s right. You were sent to retrieve him, weren’t you?”

Cole just smiled at her as they walked into the room where Jezic was being held. As he did, Jezic stood up and looked at them. He looked at Angelique suspiciously.

“Who’s that?” he insisted.

“A Dark Lighter friend of mine,” said Cole. “Stand back.”

Jezic moved away from the door of his cell and Cole formed an energy ball. He cast the weapon at the lock on the door, shattering the lock into a hundred pieces. The concussion from the blast caused the cell door to swing open. Jezic wasted no time in escaping his confines.

“Now the witch is going to pay for everything she put me through,” he said.

“That’s all ready been taken care of,” said Cole, smiling at Jezic.

“Damn,” swore the demon. “I wanted to kill her myself. Still, I suppose I should be grateful to you. You did get me out of that prison. I just hope Beelzbor won’t be too upset that I was captured. I’m not sure how to explain this to him.”

“I don’t think you’re going to have that problem,” said Cole.

Without another word, Cole formed another energy ball and cast it at Jezic. The demon was knocked back from the attack and a look of surprise crossed his face. Cole formed 2 more energy balls and cast them directly at Jezic. The third one was enough to vanquish him and Jezic vanished from the mortal plane.

“Weren’t you supposed to take him back to the Underworld?” Angelique questioned. “I thought you said that’s why the Triad hired you.”

“It was,” he said. “Don’t worry. They’ll understand. Here.” He handed her the pages with the cure on it. “Why don’t you hang onto these? They need to be kept safe and I don’t exactly have a permanent residence. You can hold onto them for me in case I need them again.”

“And what are you going to do?” Angelique asked as Cole turned and headed for the outer room.

“We need to destroy everything here. There can’t be anything left that might hint at what the cure is. It might be a long shot but it’s possible some other doctor could find out what McCoy was doing here. So I’ll need to destroy any trace of any magical involvement. Take the cure. I’ll meet you at your place when I’m done.”

“Don’t be long,” said Angelique, picking up the bottle with the cure in it. Then she dark orbed out of the building.

Cole wasted no time in destroying all of the lab equipment. A couple of well placed energy balls all but obliterated most of the equipment. Then Cole used some more energy balls to start several fires in various places in the building. He paused for a moment to make sure the fires were burning efficiently. Satisfied the entire building would be burned to the ground before help could arrive, he shimmered out of the building to meet Angelique.

* * *

“Would you care to explain,” said Candor, obviously upset with Cole, “why you chose to vanquish Jezic instead of returning him to the Underworld as you were instructed to do?”

“It was too dangerous,” said Cole. “I’ve all ready explained how dangerous the disease was. Jezic was a carrier. He would have infected the entire Underworld and there was no way to ‘cure’ him of it. The only option was to make sure that he was no longer a threat. So he had to be vanquished.”

“And what of any information he might have passed on to the Elders?”

“Minimal at best. The witch was more interested in finding a cure for the disease. She didn’t spend a great deal of time questioning him. And I can assure you, Jezic was being less than cooperative. Anything he might have passed onto them would not be a serious threat to the Underworld.”

“And you say the witch and White Lighter are dead?”

“Yes,” replied Cole. “All of her work was destroyed and the building was burned to the ground. Whatever is left is little more than rubble.”

“Well,” said Candor, his anger somewhat appeased, “you seem to have completed the assignment admirably. The rest of your fee will be waiting in the outer chamber when you leave here. I am pleased with the outcome. And I’m sure the rest of the Triad and the Source will also be pleased. You can be assured that should the need arise again, we will be seeking your services.”

“I live to serve,” said Cole, bowing slightly to Candor. The senior demon then flamed out of the chamber.

Cole turned and left the chamber smiling. He had pleased the Triad and the Source. It wouldn’t take long for word to spread in the Underworld. Many demons might still look down on him because he was half human, but he had found favor with the very top echelon of the hierarchy. That was an accomplishment he would savor for many years.

As Cole left the chamber, Piper and Ava faded from view. This time it felt different. Piper knew the vision was ending. They would be returning to the manor and Ava could begin to replicate the cure. She only hoped they would be in time to save Leo.

[noazmale]

TWELVE

“What happened?” asked Phoebe as Piper and Ava suddenly reappeared back on the chair in the manor. “You just vanished.”

“How long were we gone?” Piper asked, looking around.

“A second or two,” said Paige. “You just suddenly vanished and then reappeared.”

“I’ll explain later,” said Piper. “Right now we need to get to work. Ava has found out what she needed to know. She has to get started on the cure right away.”

“I’m not sure where to start,” said Ava. “If only we had that formula Cole gave to Angelique. That would tell me exactly what to do.”

“Wait a minute, Cole?” questioned Phoebe. “But we vanquished him.”

“Like I said, we’ll explain later,” said Piper. “But Ava is right. The cure that Elizabeth McCoy came up with in 1920 was given to Angelique for safekeeping. Since the disease never resurfaced I’ll be she still has it. But we have no way to get hold of her or even find out where she is.”

“Maybe we do,” said Phoebe. “Remember when Prue wrote that spell to summon Belthazor? We used it to force him to come to the manor. We could modify it to summon Angelique. It should bring her here from wherever she is.”

“That’s a good idea,” said Piper. “The spell is in the Book of Shadows. Prue put it in there in case we ever needed it again.”

“I’ll get it,” said Paige heading for the stairs. A couple of minutes later she returned with the book. “I found it. All we need to do is substitute Angelique for Belthazor and it should bring her right to us.”

Piper took the book from Paige and read over the spell. After a moment she spoke the incantation Prue had written there.

“Magic forces black and white, reaching out through space and light.
“Be she far or be she near, bring us the Dark Lighter, Angelique, here.”

Suddenly the magic began to form in the entryway. Within a few seconds a blond woman appeared in the entryway. She was dressed in a pantsuit. As she materialized, he hands came up and a crossbow suddenly appeared. She looked around and turned to face the women in the living room, obviously ready for a fight. When she saw the Charmed Ones there, she relaxed and the crossbow vanished.

“Well, I must admit I was quite surprised when I was suddenly yanked here,” said Angelique, walking into the living room. “I wasn’t sure who would be summoning me. Imagine my surprise to find the Charmed Ones summoning me. I am understandably curious as to why. What’s the matter, Piper? Decide to get rid of the old ball and chain and don’t want to go through a messy divorce?”

“Can the chatter,” said Piper. “Leo’s dying and we need your help.”

“My help? Now why should I want to help? He’s a White Lighter. It’s my job to kill White Lighters. Besides, I don’t have any healing powers. I’m afraid there’s not much I can do. You need to get hold of another White Lighter.”

“That’s not an option,” said Ava. “Leo is sick and a White Lighter’s healing power won’t cure it.”

“And just who might you be?” questioned Angelique. “Another witch?”

“Actually, she’s a Shuvani,” said Phoebe.

“A gypsy? Well, I’ve never had the pleasure before. I don’t usually travel in gypsy circles.”

“That’s enough,” said Piper. “We know you like to taunt us. We don’t have time for that. Leo is dying and you’re the only one that can help.”

“Like I said, I don’t know how. I can’t heal anyone. Besides, why should I?”

“Because if you don’t we’ll just vanquish your butt,” said Paige.

“My, my, aren’t we testy?” replied Angelique. “So why don’t you tell me exactly how you think I can help save your precious White Lighter.”

“You helped Cole with one of his assignments about 80 years ago,” said Piper. “He killed a witch that had come up with a cure for the Spanish Flu. And he gave you the formula for the cure for safekeeping. We need to know if you still have it.”

“How could you know about?” questioned Angelique. “I never told anyone about it. And I’m pretty sure Cole didn’t either.”

“That’s not important,” said Ava. “Do you still have the formula?”

“I suppose so. I put it in my house in case it was ever needed again. It’s probably still where I put it.”

“We need it,” said Piper.

“And what incentive could you possibly give me to give it to you? The flu never came back. And the cause of the flu was vanquished.”

“It’s back,” said Ava. “Leo has it. So do several innocents. We need that formula to create more cure to stop it.”

“And if I don’t? I can dark orb away before you can do anything. And I know a few demons that can protect me from that summoning spell.”

“Then how about self-preservation,” said Piper. “Leo has the flu. Which means we’ve all been exposed to it. And now that you’ve come into the manor, you’ve been exposed to it as well.”

“You know how virulent and deadly the disease is,” said Ava. “You were there. You know if you’ve been exposed there’s a very good chance you’ll get the disease. And without the cure you could very well die.”

“Well, when you put it that way, I suppose I don’t have much of a choice. I’ll be right back.”

Angelique dark orbed out of the manor. Ava just looked at Piper.

“Do you think she’s coming back?” Ava asked.

“I would say so,” said Piper. “You told her yourself. There’s a very good chance she could get the disease and die. She needs the cure as much as we do.”

“She could just take the formula to an alchemist, like Cole suggested,” said Ava. “She doesn’t really need us for that.”

Before Piper could answer Angelique dark orbed back into the manor. She was holding several pages that were obviously yellowed with age but still relatively unchanged. She handed the pages to Ava.

“Here you go,” she said. “That’s everything Cole gave to me. He said it was the formula for creating the cure. Now I suggest you get started on the cure. I have no desire to get sick like those people did back then.”

“What’s this?” Piper asked, indicating what looked like a list written on the first page.

“It looks like a list of ingredients needed for the potion,” said Ava. “That’s usually how these are written. It gives you the list of ingredients you need and then there should be a step by step method for creating the serum. It looks like it’s all here. We do have a problem, though. One of the ingredients is White Lighter blood. I can’t use Leo’s. He’s infected. It would make the cure useless.”

“You know White Lighters,” Phoebe said to Angelique. “You could bring one here so we could use their blood.”

“Oh, sure,” said Angelique. “I just dark orb to a White Lighter and ask them to come with me. I’m sure any White Lighter would be glad to just take my word on it.”

“She’s got a point,” said Piper.

“What about me?” Paige questioned. “Will my blood work? I’m half White Lighter?”

“It might,” said Ava. “It would be more diluted than full White Lighter’s blood but at the very least it should help slow down the disease until we can get a full White Lighter.”

“Come on,” said Piper. “This is essentially a potion. I have almost all of those ingredients in the kitchen. We can whip it up in the kitchen.”

“In the mean time,” said Angelique, taking a seat in one of the chairs in the living room, “why don’t you fill me in on how you could possibly know so much about something that happened over 80 years ago. This should be good.”

* * *

“How do you feel?” Ava asked as Leo sat on the sofa with a blanket around him.

“Tired,” said Leo. “And I’m kind of hungry.”

“We’ll, that’s a good sign,” said Ava. “I think he’s out of the woods. He’ll need to rest up for a few days and I’ll want to come back and check on him tomorrow. But I think he’s going to be fine.”

“Thank God,” said Piper, hugging Leo. “I was afraid we were going to lose you.”

“Be careful,” said Leo. “I wouldn’t want you to catch this thing. It’s really no fun at all.”

“Not much chance of that happening,” said Phoebe. “We’ve all taken the cure that Ava came up with. So we can’t be infected.”

“At least for a while,” said Angelique. “As long as the cure is in your system you’ll be protected from the disease. But once the cure has worked its way out of your system you’ll be at just as much risk as anyone else.”

“I guess I should thank you, too,” Leo said to Angelique. “I never thought I’d have a Dark Lighter to thank for saving my life.”

“That makes 2 of us,” said Angelique. “I never dreamed I’d ever save a White Lighter instead of killing one. Besides, it wasn’t completely altruistic. I needed the cure for myself as well. I’d really appreciate it if this didn’t get out. I can’t have it getting out that I helped a White Lighter.”

“They won’t hear about it from us,” said Phoebe. “You did help save Leo’s life. I guess we owe you something for that.”’

“Thanks,” said Angelique.

“Well, we have a slight problem,” said Ava. “Now that I know the cure works, I can give it to my patients at the clinic. But there are others that need it. And driving there to get the cure to them might take too long. If Leo was feeling better I’d ask him to orb it there. I don’t know how we’re going to get the cure to them in time.”

“I’ll do it,” said Angelique. “At least this time we can put a stop to it before it infects half the world. And I’ll need some to take to the Underworld in case any demons have been infected. We have to stop it before it spreads any further.”

“Speaking of demons,” said Paige, “you did say this was a mutated form of a demonic disease. And according to your vision, it started when a half human half demon caught the disease. I think we can assume that’s what started it again this time. Which means we need to find that demon before he infects anymore people.”

“I can help with that, too,” said Angelique. “I can speak to a couple of demons in the hierarchy that I know. They can find out which half humans have been in those areas recently. It shouldn’t be very hard to track this one down. And I can assure you he will be dealt with.”

“You’re being awfully helpful,” said Piper suspiciously.

“For a Dark Lighter, you mean,” said Angelique, smiling at her. “But like I told Leo, it’s not altruistic. This disease is at least as dangerous to the Underworld as it is to humans. And once the cure is out of my system I’m just as much at risk as any demon. So, as you said earlier, this is as much self-preservation as anything else.”

“I’ll go bottle some of the cure for you,” said Piper. “With any luck we should be able to put a stop to this disease within a few hours.”

“And I’m going to hang onto this,” said Ava, holding up the sheets of paper that had the formula written on it. “It’s possible this could happen again. I want to be ready if it does.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” said Phoebe.

“Phoebe, I never had a chance to tell you how sorry I am that you had to vanquish Cole,” said Angelique. “I know he truly loved you. And I know how hard it must have been for you to do what you had to do.”

“He didn’t leave us much choice,” said Phoebe. “Like you said, it was self-preservation.”

“That doesn’t make it any easier,” said Angelique. “Cole was a very dear friend. I miss him.”

“You’ll forgive us if we don’t feel the same way,” said Paige, a note of sarcasm in her voice.

“Well, he was half demon,” said Angelique, smiling. “I think I’ll go get that bottle from Piper and dark orb out. The sooner I get that cure to those people the sooner it will be over.”

“She’s not what I expected a demon to be like,” said Ava as Angelique went into the kitchen. “The few demons I’ve had contact with were less than personable. She actually seems like someone you could get to know and like.”

“Technically, she’s not a demon,” said Leo. “She’s like a White Lighter. She was once human. After she died she was brought back as a Dark Lighter. Just as I was brought back as a White Lighter.”

“I see,” said Ava. “Well, at least we have a cure. And once we’ve cured everyone who has the disease it should prevent it from spreading any farther. I hope Piper made plenty of the potion. We can cure everyone we know is infected. But it’s possible there are people who are infected we don’t know about yet. We may need more of the cure for them.”

“I’m sure she’s made plenty,” said Phoebe. “She knows how important this is and she also knows there’s no guarantee we’ll get everyone the first time around. The question is how are we going to know if there are any other outbreaks elsewhere in the world? The demon that began infecting people might have travelled anywhere. There could a lot of people around the world still incubating that could still develop the disease.”

“I’ll contact another White Lighter I know,” said Leo. “He can take the cure to them to make sure they aren’t infected. And he can tell them what’s going on. The Elders can keep a watch and see if anyone else develops the disease. Then it will be a simple matter to have a White Lighter secretly deliver the cure to anyone who is infected.”

“Well,” said Ava, “it seems we’ve been able to avert a major disaster. And all it took was a trip to the past, the use of White Lighter blood; or in this case half White Lighter blood; and a formula I can’t even consider releasing to the medical community.”

“Well, at least we were able to find a cure,” said Phoebe. “And it means one less disease that people have to worry about catching.”

“What about using the formula for other diseases?” Paige questioned. “The healing power in my blood might make the potion useful against other forms of disease.”

“I doubt it,” said Ava. “In the first place it took nearly 3 times the amount of your blood as it did full White Lighter’s blood because it’s diluted. In the second place, the formula was specifically designed to combat the Spanish Flu. I doubt it would be effective on anything else, the healing properties of the White Lighter blood notwithstanding. Most treatments for something aren’t all that effective against other ailments or diseases, although there are cases where a treatment for one type of disease actually proves to be effective against something else.

“For example I recently read that nicotine-based medications seems to help fight dementia and Alzheimer’s. And it also appears that people who are descended from the survivors of the Black Plague in Europe seem to be immune to Aids. There’s still a lot of research to be done but so far the results have been quite promising. But I don’t think this cure is going to be of much use against anything other than the Spanish Flu.”

“Well, at least we have it,” said Phoebe. “If it should come up again, all we need to do it manufacture the cure and stop it in its’ tracks.”

“Speaking of which,” said Ava, “I really need to get back and treat my two patients and my nurse. And I think I’ll put a little bit of the cure in the water cooler at work. Just to make sure none of the other staff members are infected. Leo, I’ll stop back tomorrow and check up on you. In the mean time, just get plenty of rest and drink plenty of fluids. I think you’re going to be fine in a couple of days.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice,” said Leo, leaning back on the sofa. “I feel like death warmed over. I’m not sure there’s much I can do except rest.”

“I’ll go get the cure from Piper,” said Ava, standing up. “I really should get back as quickly as possible. I’ll see you all tomorrow.”

“Well, when Piper’s finished in the kitchen, she’s going to tell us all about this vision she and Ava had,” said Phoebe as Ava went into the kitchen. “And just exactly what Cole had to do with it. We vanquished him weeks ago.”

“It should prove interesting,” said Paige moving over to Leo. “Come on, Leo. Let’s get you to your room. You’ll probably feel a lot better in bed than you do on this sofa.”

“I wish I could,” said Leo. “But I don’t think I have the strength to climb the stairs.”

“No problem there, brother-in-law,” said Paige as she took Leo’s arm and orbed them both out of the living room.

As Paige and Leo orbed to Leo and Piper’s room, Phoebe went into the kitchen to see if there was anything she could do to help Piper with the potion.

The End

If you’ve enjoyed this story, you can find more “Charmed” stories at my website, Creative Passions, listed in my bio. You can also post your own “Charmed” stories or other stories if you like to write fan fiction.