Cole shimmered to a quiet lane in Los Angeles not far from Hollywood Boulevard, on the edges of the Hollywood scene area. He knocked on a discrete door with the words 'West Coast Social Club' in small letters on it, put on his best and most seductive smile and despite the exclusive nature of the club had no problem gaining entry.

The club was a décor that was out there, all leather and shadow which told Leo it was the sort of club that P3 wasn't . It was packed and its clients were not inhibited at all. They were expressing themselves ardently in doubles threesomes and the odd larger group. It slowly dawned on Leo that most of he clientele were male and those that weren't male, weren't female either.

As Belthezor weaved his way to the bar, Leo was very nervous, where this was going. From the comments and offers made and invitations to join groups the tight, tight jeans having the effect Cole wanted. As he became used to the dark light Leo was bemused to see quite a few of his favourite action heroes in …action. The bar was clearly the high class end of town where the Hollywood people came to be themselves and play in a private environment. He ruefully admitted to himself he had no right to be bemused but knew he was going to look at certain fifties action films differently from now on. And it was going to take a certain angelic control not to disillusion Piper 's enjoyment of some romantic ones.

A youngish man caught Cole's arm and he turned the sexy smirk still in place. Leo started as he recognised the man as an actor who would make a career as one of the most beloved father figures in the history of television.

"Hey gorgeous," he arched toward Cole . "You free?"

Leo held his breath.

Cole smiled almost insolently sexy, "Sure " he said. "But not available. I see who I'm looking for right now. Maybe later."  He smiled. And Leo to his annoyance with himself felt a distinct sense of relief.

The actor glanced toward where Cole had indicated. And this time Leo was really nervous as he recognised the demon Troxa possessively standing next to a thin young man, who had sex written all over him. "Hmm " the actor snorted " I can tell you know that Trokkie doesn't like to share his toys."

Leo's sense of relief disappeared.

"Thanks for the warning " Cole said sweetly " But Trokkie and I go way back. We understand each other."

Troxa, his blue eyes startling bright, and his small goatee giving him a satyr expression was clearly enjoying playing games with the young man, who if he wasn't exactly smitten was obsessive toward the demon and playing the game well.

"Friend Troxa " Cole smiled maliciously as he approached " Long time no see."

"Friend" replied Troxa possessively putting his hand on the back of his companion's neck." Belthezor. Not long enough. How did you find me?"

"You're not as invisible as you think " Belthezor drawled eyeing the young man who had cigarette in one hand, and downed a whisky with the other. The young man who was wearing glasses which covered myopic blue eyes, eyed Cole suggestively, clearly interested as Leo became agitated.

Troxa caught the glance. "You Belthezor, keep away from Jimmie." he rasped, catching at young man's neck tighter. Jimmie resisted strongly and pulled free, eying Belthezor.

"You know the rules.. Trokkie. Best demon takes all " Cole purred watching the young man's reaction. Jimmie contemplatively, and somewhat deliberately took a long drag on the cigarette and blew out the smoke almost into Troxa's face.

"Piss off Belthezor" snapped Troxa " before you piss me off."

"You don't scare me Troxa" Belthezor told him unconcerned "you never have."

Troxa ignored Cole and turned to Jimmie. "You keep away from this demon" he ordered Jimmie.

Belthezor narrowed his eyes and Leo realised apprehensively, that the young man was aware of his protector's demonic identity.

"This is a nasty demon" Troxa told Jimmie "This is the one who betrays as he breathes. This is the one who'll promise anything and break his word without a second thought. Not like me. I keep my promises."

"Give you some good advice Jimmie" Cole said with shrug as the young man leaned back against the bar taking suggestive pose. "Be very careful of demons who keep their promises. There's keeping promises and keeping promises."

"I'll remember that" drawled Jimmie in brisk edgy voice glancing contemplatively from Cole to Troxa.

"Jimmy gong to be a star, going to be a big star. Troxa smiled evilly. "If he plays the game. That's what he wants. That's what I can give him in return for...his friendship. You remember that Jimmie" he added with an edge in his voice."

"If he thinks it's worth selling his soul for" Belthezor answered disinterested.

"I'm already a star. I was before I met  you" Jimmie told Troxa with a touch of indignation in his voice.

"You made two movies." Troxa snitched. "You'll be the biggest star in Hollywood after the movie you finished today. A legend " Troxa told Jimmie. He leered evilly "I promise."

"How does that help me. Being a legend?" asked Jimmie still not quite committed and looking at Cole clearly considering his options.

Which Leo, Troxa and Cole noticed.

"Piss off Belthezor" said Troxa starting to get angry,.

Cole considered it, he smiled at Jimmie just suggestively enough to send Troxa into a fury.

"I will if you tell me something" Cole smiled evilly  "Which demons did you set the warlock Willem up to get for you on tomorrow's new moon and where's he going to do it?"

"Don't know any Willem" said Troxa severely pissed. "And if I did I wouldn't tell you, Belthezor" he told Cole nastily.

"I guess I won't piss off then " Cole answered calmly

Troxa took a deep breath "And if you start spreading stories about me selling off brother demons" he hissed "I'll come after you."

"I'll fight you." smiled Belthezor not intimidated and this was noted by Jimmie who shifted his weight toward Cole ."

"You can't defeat me Belthezor " sneered Troxa. "You never could. And I don't know any Willem."

"Okay tell me about the last middle level demon sect that pissed you off" Cole asked unfazed.

"Piss off : Belthezor:" Troxa ordered him reaching for Jimmie.

Jimmie was rigid." Sure you know a Willem " he said looking at Belthezor " Big guy looks like a bad Bela Lugusi freak" he added.

"That's the one" said Cole smiling at Jimmie who reacted interested.

"Piss off" said Troxa, lifting his hand in a threat. "Jimmie is mine. His soul is mine."

The expression on Jimmie's face was not pretty.

 To Leo's relief Cole apparently decided he was getting no where.

"If you won't tell me about Willem " he murmured mischievously. "I guess I have no business here. " Cole smiled nastily "Just remember one, Trokkie… one good turn deserves another.

Leo breathed a sigh of relief and then noticed Jimmie making a slight flick of his head, in the direction of the door leading to the car park.

Leo's relief again disappeared.

"Be seeing you.. Trokkie " Cole told Troxa the invisible demon as he left.

He waited in the car park, where several very expensive cars were parked and about an hour later Jimmie appear, insolently smoking a cigarette, the shirt undone to his waist.

"What can I do for you? " Cole asked smiling, suggestive, as Jimmie took on a sexy pout.

"Save me" Jimmy said mockingly and then without waiting for an answer over to a Porsche 550 Spyder parked close. "Like it?" he asked Belthezor. "Gonna race it this week. Trailering it down to the track tomorrow."

"Pretty car" said Cole pretending an interest. "How can I save you?" he asked casually.

"I had to make some promises to friend Trokkie about… my career" Jimmie drawled. "You want to know about this Willem, I can tell you. I was in the.. ah bedroom when this crazy looking Bella Lugosi thing appeared. It didn't see me. I saw it."

"How do you know about demons?" asked Cole genuinely interested, to Leo's surprise. "You don't seem to worry about them."

"I worry" Jimmie replied darkly "I know about demons because how do you think a guy like me makes it big here, without a little occult assistance." Jimmie sneered self mockingly.

"Talent?" asked Cole dryly.

Jimmie snorted "Talent pays shit in this town" he told Belthezor "Trokkie wants my soul when this picture I just finished makes me a legend. I don't want to give it to him.

"I thought he wanted you body and soul" drawled Cole.

"He's got a much as he's going to get" said Jimmie stroking the car with more affection than he showed to Troxa. "

"Who'd be a demon?" thought Leo

"You fix it so Trokkie doesn't get my soul?" Jimmie bargained "And I just may remember more about this Willem. Can you do that?"

Cole thought about it as Leo recognised the car that Jimmie was touching arrogantly and possessively. As did anyone who ever watched fifties movies.

"Yeah" said Cole thinking about "I can do that."

"And I'm not giving my soul to you" insisted Jimmie.

"I don't want...your soul. Or your body." Cole replied business like. "I just want the information."

Jimmie clearly thought over his options and finally came out with the deal that Troxa has told Willem of a cult of razor demons who had a power to slice souls out of their victims. "They owed Trokkie some souls and didn't want to pay." he told Cole.

"Where did he tell Willem they would be?" asked Cole grimly.

"Somewhere called, sounded like Wheaten in Africa " Jimmie answered." never heard of it. They used another name t00, sounded like "Talula."

"Tel el Amarna?" asked Cole knowing the ancient city of Pharaohs in Egypt, a nexus for all sorts of demon cults to use. If you knew the magic to connect.

"Maybe" shrugged Jimmie. "Trokkie was lying when he said he didn't know Willem" he told Belthezor.

"He wasn't" Cole said. "And I wasn't when I warned you about how demons keep promises" he said.

"I need to get my soul away from Trokkie" Jimmie insisted. "I don't think I can go on with those things... evil controlling me" he added desperation rasping in his voice.

"I can do that" Cole promised. He walked around the car. "That thing really can go?" he asked. "Ever tried it on the road?"

"No" said Jimmie Dean "me and my buddy who introduced me to Trokkie we were gonna trailer it to the track tomorrow. Maybe I'll drive it just to see what it can do."

"You do that" agreed Belthezor.

"And you'll make sure Troxa doesn't get... my soul" Jimmie asked pushing.

"I promise" said Belthezor smoothly,

"And the information was all you wanted?" Jimmie asked, taking on a sexy pout.

"Sorry, yeah just information. I was just playing games" Cole answered stepping back. "Doing whatever it takes."

"You're good at it" said Jimmie disappointed as he butted out a cigarette and threw it on the ground.

"I was always good at learning mortal games" said Cole smiling a little grimly as Jimmie got into the Porsche and drove off.

The next day to Leo's dismay just after five Belthezor Cole shimmered to a cross road at a small Californian desert town called Cholame. He waited until he saw the Porsche Spyder roaring up to the cross road just as another car turned into the road.

Belthezor flicked a finger and the car veered into the path of the Porsche and pushed it straight into a lamp post.

"Say goodbye Jimmie Dean" murmured Cole watching the smash. "As you said what good does being a legend do for you. At least this way Troxa doesn't get your soul."

"There are ways of keeping promises...and ways of keeping promises." Leo thought bitterly.

………………………………

Cole shimmered to the valley of Tel el Amarna in Egypt as the new moon rose on the horizon. He did not have to wait long. The nexus always showed when the lights came on. Locals and others mostly kept away from the site at night, believing the lights were ghosts. Leo thought it was just as well as the lights usually meant something far worse.

Cole knew that this site was one that over millenniums had been fought over by various sects who used it for nefarious purposes. However he did not truly appreciate the ruined city of the Pharaohs. Africa mad him edgy and uncertain and clearly had no idea why.

"Cole was doomed to deal with Africa right from the start," mused Leo.

The razors appeared as soon as the moon came fully over the horizon. They were dark cloaked demons, who looked curiously like skeletons in robes with long, long blade like hands. They were not upper level demons but close and had a human form that always looked elongated and misshapen. Their work was to infect mortals in with greed to get hold of their souls, and then carve them up. Belthezor was not surprised Troxa was connected with them. Upper level demons often hired razors to find lost souls and create extra currency, but they were known to switch deals if better one came. Normally the razors were supported by soul hunters who were close to the source but lately they had been out of favour.

The razors had a liking for lonely old sites of ancient cities and many witch covens in the Middle East had powers, that could blunt and rust their talons and after that they were fairly defenceless to any active power.

Belthezor watched the demons at work. It was messy work. The razors had collected a good proportion of lost souls who had finally been called to hand over and it was a blood bath that revolted the good magical soul Cole that not so long ago had only just failed to answer a call to light but was no longer walking the path of evil. 

Cole shuddered in revulsion, confronted with the reality of what he believed himself to be and thought he could not change. It also made the demon in him edgy and uptight because the good soul was in ascendency and it was forced face to the duality in its makeup that could one-day get it killed…. or worse.

The warlocks arrived some time after; just the three Willem, Fleischer and Vala. It appeared they had managed to take the rust power from several local witches because the three warlocks each had it and they made use of it, with selected active powers stolen from witches. They had telekinesis to skewer demons with any nearby object, a power of stabbing demon hearts with icicles. Piper would say a real freeze power Leo thought, and another that cause the demon to catchy their throat gasping as if for air. The warlocks were not selective how they used the powers, and their work added to the destruction of the lost souls, creating a grizzly scene.

Leo watching through Cole's eyes, seeing powers of good witches subverted to the level of destruction by evil, felt something very akin to the revulsion Cole was feeling. Cole contemplated his own recent failure to make the brave choice to cross to the light, leaving him caught in this life of helplessness and hopelessness, which he was not quite prepared to succumb to, or the demon would not let him. Leo realising it would be forty years and more before Cole finally found an escape and a release, and wondered how many times he would repeat these scenes of self loathing before he finally found the courage to cross when he fell in love with Phoebe.

The warlocks mangled the main group of razor demons, taking the time to suck in the evil from their victims. They still found some alive and spent some time tormenting them, playing cat and mouse. Watching the brutal law of the evil jungle, Leo was surprised to find it was the demon not Cole most in danger of interfering at the affront the warlocks were giving to his demon status.

"This a good catch" said Vala "and we have to thank brother Troxa for it. I'll find a way" she hissed.

"Keep away from the demons" said her brother Willem ordered "they're dangerous and have no respect.  They treat you …disrespectfully, and by association all warlocks."

"They're pretty" said Vala as Willem snorted jealously.

As they finished their grizzly task, Fleischer turned to his brother "We have enough evil now to use the Great Power to go after Belthezor." he insisted.

"It isn't you who has to use the Great Power. The power will kill me." hissed Willem, showing his real face, not a king just a warlock pretender, who lived by fear. "I need more evil. We need more evil."

"We have enough evil" said Fleischer angrily. "And Belthezor knows our secret. The memory power failed. He has to go. And only the Great Power will destroy a demon of that level."

Leo and Cole both started as they realised they had just been told the secret of the warlock powers.

"And maybe kill me in the process it is so toxic" croaked Willem, "But you would like that wouldn't you brother."

"You could try using an athame face to face with him" snarked Vala and smirked as Willem called her a bitch.

"Raynor is suspicious about the evil or he wouldn't be sending these damned demons" said Fleischer. "We have just avoided the problem when Troxa duped Vala into showing him our realm"

He snarled as Vala spat at him.

"And hell only knows how Belthezor found it." "Fleischer continued "We have to get him before he finds out about the evil. This realm was built by others many years... eons ago. It is our great heritage to protect it from the source and all his cursed minions." said Fleischer said sanctimoniously.

Leo was surprise to find the warlocks thought they had a calling.

Who knew how the other half of the magic world lived.

"We rule because we provide the brethren with evil. And if we don't they will turn on us. Remember the late King Chalo" Fleischer continued.

"I should. I killed him" said Willem snippily. "I know if demons find out we need their powers or we can no longer provide our brethren with evil, I am dead."

"Belthezor didn't have the anger in him when he invaded our realm" said Willem. "The great Power would not have worked.

"You can make him angry. That pretty part of him has great secrets" Vala told her brothers, confirming she had some powers of telepathy "I felt it."

"Felt it with a power you won't share" Willem croaked.

Vala gave him a smile of pure evil "I share enough…Brother" she said "There is a part of that demon that is not evil and it is deathly afraid."

"Afraid of what?" Fleischer asked.

"I did not have enough evil to know more, the knowledge would have killed me" Vala replied, "and you would not share all your powers, Brother." She told Willem.

"Ï share enough with you" croaked Willem.

"If we use the great power on Belthezor we can collect his powers and pass on his secret that the evil is not complete in him" Fleischer thought "that should be worth something to keep Raynor occupied elsewhere."

Willem and Vala ignored him.

Leo bet himself Fleischer was the middle child.

And the warlocks could say no more because acting on what Leo felt was an evil instinct to survive at any cost, the   demon Belthezor, separated itself from Cole and assumed control. It rose from the rocks to protect itself. Leo could feel again the unmitigated impact of evil, the anger, the contempt, the fear and the need to be satisfied and sated of self at any cost. It nauseated his soul.

The demon acting on angry emotion and not reason, faced the warlocks with a grunt and an explosion of fireballs, which bounced of some protection field power Fleisher surrounded them with.

All three warlocks tried to blink. Belthezor used a block power, leaving the warlocks drawing on an arsenal of witches powers to try and fend off the demon, who was angrily propelling fireballs that weakened the protection shield.

Vala ordered fearfully and furious at her brothers vacillating "Use the Great Power. He is afraid. I tell you there is enough evil. He is afraid. He is afraid" she hissed.

The witches' powers defended the warlocks for a short time but clearly the Great demon was in ascendency and Willem finally seemed to shrivel up and his own need for survival at any cost overtook him. As the Great Power reached out to the furiously angry and fearful demon, a huge wave of emotion hit Belthezor stopping the demon mid-fireball throw.

Belthezor sunk to his knees under the weight of the emotional beating he was taking, Willem, king and ruler again, feeding off his fading power cackled "Die demon" he said. "Die by your own fears."

And he gleefully clapped as the red and black creature shrivelling under the weight of his angry fears.

"He is afraid" he told Vala as she and Fleischer put a hand on Willem's shoulder to share their evil.

And Leo knew they were right. Cole was cold calm determined but the anger and fear had taken out the demon out of Cole's control. It's evil and pent up dark emotions were killing it.

"What are you afraid of Mighty Belthezor? What dirty secrets a have you got, that you don't want your demon masters to know?" taunted Willem believing the demon defeated.

The demonic powers began to be sucked out of Belthezor.

Leo told himself not to panic. Forty years later the demon self of Belthezor, all of Belthezor would be alive and well and Phoebe would destroy. Leo knew this, he hoped.

And Willem became stronger as he sucked the great evil of the demon core of Belthezor. The demon caught by his own demonic nature could not fight. And then Leo felt the change happen.

Willem on the verge of destroying the demon could go no further. Because he touched the human magic of Cole and Cole disgusted at the baseness of the evil he had seen the warlocks and razors do, seeing it as a reflection of himself with the demon self nearly defeated, unable to insist on survival, Cole didn't care enough to fight.

After a short struggle, Cole's humanity and good soul won the battle, and Willem lost contact with the demonic emotion and as he did Belthezor was able to retrieve his demonic power and suck away Willem's. Vala and Fleischer snapped their hands away from their brother to protect their own evil.

As Cole won the battle Willem was on his knees too, failing now, his white Dracula face almost green...poisoned from the goodness of the witch's power he collected. The irony was not lost on Leo. The great power of transmergence was killing Willem because Cole did not care enough for the life he was living to fight him.

Willem almost gone was finally caught by either arm by his brother and sister and as Belthezor still magically weak from the battle could not hold any warlock block, they started to blink.

"There will be a reckoning" Fleischer told Belthezor as they disappeared.

Belthezor fell on the rocky sand of Tel el Amarna, gasping for breath and trying to absorb the extra evil power he had drawn from Willem, as it hit him intoxicating his evil, magnifying the anger of the demon.

"So that is why only the most dangerous evil warlocks come after the Charmed Ones." thought Leo "Most aren't powerful enough to steal enough evil power to counter the toxic effects of the good ones."

Who knew?

The demon entity Belthezor still prostrate on the ground shimmered to a hidden spot, a small magic fold on an ugly rocky beach the west coast of England.

"Cole and beaches" thought Leo. "Even then."

The beach was unattractive to mortals and hidden away from demon prying eyes the summoning of good and the vision of warlocks. The demon was angry, angry and evil and intoxicated with new power; and frightened having come so close to the loss of existence and to Leo's horror out of control of the human soul. It needed to be sated and it needed to pacify its fear and the only way it could do it was to kill but it did not know how to get to Willem.

"How did Cole do it?" wondered Leo" how had he compartmentalise himself so much that he could protect himself from the demon self within."

The anger was undiminished; Cole was not going to control it until it had killed. As the anger built the entity changed back to the human form of Cole but Leo who was feeling overwhelmed by the evil, knew that it was demon self who acted. Contorted with evil it shimmered to a small park that Leo thought was in Toronto but knew its location was merely random. It could have been anywhere in the world. The demon was going to kill. It had to kill.  Until it killed Belthezor could not function as an entity again.

There were six small boys playing football in a corner, none of them yet ten years old. They were having a great game, yelling and calling and bursting with energy. They caught the attention of the demon. He focused on them and Leo was shocked to feel a burst of anger and pain coming out of Cole's soul. Their innocence and potential hurt him and he hated then for it. Hated them nearly as much as he hated what he was. Wanted to destroy their innocence, destroy the pain their innocence caused him.

Leo shuddered with fear as the hatred welled up.

It was the hatred that saved them. The demon was not in the mood to satisfy any demands of the human symbiont.

Belthezor watched the people passing him by frustration growing as the human soul, fought him. The focus on the children seemed to have allowed Cole to establish some influence but the demon needed a victim.

Leo caught up in the ensuring battle found himself being dragged between the two sides of Belthezor's identity, feeling every emotion of both of them. And then suddenly the demon and mortal seemed to find a common ground and Cole almost noticeably calmed. Leo realised the choice had been made.

The demon using Cole's mortal form moved toward a small somewhat shrivelled woman being held close by a medium sized balding man with a largish belly and balding. He and the women were walking on the edge of the park, and she had a hesitant fearful expression as she was pulled close to him.

Leo suddenly remembered Cole once saying his demon self could sense human murderers, that the smell of fresh blood on their hands was as clear to him as if he could see it and Leo could smell it on this man, lots of it, over whelming. Belthezor walked up to the man touched him on the shoulder and to Leo's shock produced an athame and slammed it into the man's side. He fell as the demon plunged it again and again in a blood letting fury, expending its anger and sating its core.

The woman screamed as the gun the man had been holding against her hit the ground with a clatter. She sobbed help me help me and fell into a passer-by's arms, half fainting, at the closeness of her escape. As police ran up and she muttered something about being taken hostage in a robbery, in the general confusion Belthezor shimmered to New York bar where he ordered straight whisky.

Cole in charge of the entity, now he had killed, sat there drinking whisky and thinking. Because of his own small magic empathy he was usually able to pick up any telepathic powers that could recognise his good soul but all the powers held by the three warlocks Vala's telepathic power had been masked.

"There will be a reckoning" Cole thought of the words of the warlock. His apathy and disgust of evil had saved him in that fight but Vala certainly knew and understood more than her brothers about the good and evil conflicting him. How many powers of emotion, telepathy, empathy she had Cole did not want to know. Whatever she had was too much. And it was only matter of time before she acted on her knowledge, or explained it more carefully to her brothers.

His secret was not safe, some-one in the world of evil had it and he either got rid of her and preferably her brothers or he gave up and died.

And the demon sated though it was from the kill, was not about to let that happen. Cole, away from the immediate evidence of the brutality of evil and the levels to which it could sink thought there was dead and dead. He guessed that the death demon masters would inflict on him if his secret was found out would not be...pleasant nor would the eternity in hell.

So the light that reached his soul not withstanding he needed to get the warlocks before the damage was done and worry about how he would explain his failure to Raynor later. Although Leo noted the thought of blaming Troxa occurred to him.

And he had to do it now while the demon was sated from the kill and could be controlled. Cole fingered the amulet that protected him from the memory power and he pulled out the athame, pricking his finger on the sharp end. Calm coldly determined.

"Shit" thought Leo" do you ever stop killing.

Cole stood up, smiled smoothly at the bartender and left without paying the bill.

Outside the bar Cole, still calm and confident he could take the warlocks shimmered, fighting his way through the hidden wind paths to the warlock's lair and noting some way out though other realms, Leo realised. Survival was apparently an option.

Cole shimmered into the warlock throne room, directly in front of the three thrones where, surrounded by purple light Willem and his brother and sister were watching some ritual with female warlocks and strange tow headed creatures with big lower limbs. As far as Leo was concerned it was far to close and encounter with the rituals of evil.

"I knew you would come" cackled Willem as Fleischer nodded. "The mighty Belthezor cannot admit to defeat by warlocks."

Cole Leo noted from this assumed the warlock's had found a way to pool their evil and finish him in their own realm, when Belthezor had no advantage of surprise.

"Cole was never stupid" Leo thought. "Reckless yes. Stupid no."

"Stop them" Cole ordered as the he glanced over his shoulder at the ritual.

"You have some issues with the way we live out lives?" asked Fleischer.

"Our demon friend has a... duality of spirit."Vala informed them "It seems he possess some of good's squeamishness for our honest ways."

"I don't like warlocks" Cole told them calmly and half turned and the leading players of the ritual disappeared in a buff of smoke.

The surrounding warlocks starting to approach saw the fireballs and backed away.

"You think any of them would help you" said Cole sneering. "All they want for from you is power."

"As it should be?" cackled Willem mimicking regality as Vala smiled nastily.

All three warlocks stood up, "Belthezor" said Willem, ""You come to invade us abuse our hospitality."

As the warlock king spoke, Cole noticed Fleisher step back and nod in the direction of a courtier ane he felt a heavy evil mist invade the area, a power demons sometimes used to incapacitate its victims. He could no longer move his hand fast enough to throw a fireball.

"Shit" thought Leo.

Cole clearly decided conversation any further conversation was just giving the warlock's time to use further tricks. Belthezor shimmered, using the micro second in the spirit winds to raise the athame. He came out of the shimmer behind Vala. With the athame in position and his other hand raised. He caught her throat and stuck the athame into her back as hard as he could. She fell to the ground a pool of black blood staining her white robes. The blood making a hissing sound as it flowed.

All the warlocks had shocked expressions as if they could not believe this betrayal of the niceties of warlock interaction which required all ritual discussion before action.

Belthezor dropped Vala's body and stepped almost in slow motion to Willem, cold blooded calm, unemotional.

As Belthezor slowly raised the athame at the warlock king, Fleischer hit him with the glass sword and the demon staggered back almost in slow motion caught in the shoulder. He used the force of his fall to throw a fireball at the sword shattering it and Fleischer pulled out a spinning star witch light power. He aimed it at Belthezor. Belthezor tried to shimmer but the warlocks ha enacted some anti shimmering device. The star hit him. It had little effect on the demon but it slammed into memory power protection amulet and it shattered with a greenish red flash.

Belthezor seeing the flash realised what had happened. Unable to shimmer, Fleischer struck at him with his own athame and red blood poured from both his wounds.

"Shit" thought Leo amazed to discover Cole still calmly believed he was going to win the fight.

Belthezor fell and using his supreme demon strength and ignoring the pain of the wounds he raised a fireball but Fleischer was able to telekinetic it back at him. As the fireball came straight at him, Willem realised the memory power protection was gone  and he raised his hand so the green light of the memory power, supported by all the evil he had apparently called back from other warlocks was directed at the bleeding demon Belthezor, prostrate on the floor.

Leo tried telling himself, Cole survived; Cole survived, although he could see no way out. Belthezor was not yet convinced he had lost and as Leo knew he did survive he became very excited, anxious to learn how.

The memory power green light surrounded the entity of Belthezor and just before it overwhelmed him, Leo felt the pull of the swirling spirit winds and he was sucked away from the demon entity Belthezor.