Below is the beginning of an Alternate Universe "CHARMED" fan fiction story I had written some time ago. It is a sequel to both "Neighbors" and "Two Thumbs Up!". It is called, "RETURN WITH A VENGEANCE":
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“RETURN WITH A VENGEANCE”
E-Mail: deerush76@yahoo.com
Categories: Alternate Universe, Drama
Ratings: [PG-13]
Content Warnings: N/A
Spoilers: N/A
Season: Set in alternate Season 5.
Disclaimer: Cole Turner, the Charmed Ones and other characters related to Charmed to Spelling Productions, Brad Kern and Constance Burge. The McNeills and Cecile Dubois are my creation.
Summary: The remaining Crozat warlocks from ”Neighbors” seek vengeance against Cole, the McNeills and the Halliwells by unleashing an unknown power that threatens a close friend.
CHAPTER 1
A tall, dark-haired man appeared in front of one of the numerous old buildings on Columbus Street. He sighed, brushed away imaginary dirt from his jacket and disappeared as fast as he had appeared.
Seconds later, he re-appeared inside the building's fifth floor corridor - in front of a door marked VENDRUM Company. The man cleared his throat and opened the door. The office interior contrasted sharply with the building's old-fashioned exterior. Edward Crozat examined the office with an approving eye. The modern and expensive décor reminded him of his former office in Seattle. In fact, it made him feel right at home.
"Cousin Edward!" A beautiful, statuesque woman with pale skin, dark hair and eyes, strode toward him. "I see that you finally made it. Has the office met with your approval?"
Edward nodded. "Perfect. It's almost as if I had never left Seattle. Are the others here?"
"Yes. They're waiting for you in the Conference Room." Suzanne Crozat led her cousin into another room, mainly occupied by a long table. Three other men sat in seats surrounding the table.
Once Edward and Suzanne occupied the remaining empty chairs, the meeting began. "Cousins, I gather that you all know why we're here. The five of us . . ." Edward glanced around the table, ". . . are the last remnants of the Crozat Coven. Five out of what used to be at least thirty to thirty-five members." He paused, as a frown darkened his countenance. "An absolute sacrilege, in my opinion."
"Your brother Philip, should not have proposed the move from Seattle," commented one Crozat cousin. His name happened to be Henry. He was a stocky man with beady black eyes and thinning hair.
Edward glanced at his cousin. "How can one seize control of the Source’s Realm without the extra powers needed? At least ten witches in the San Francisco Area possessed the powers we had required."
"I assume you are referring to the Charmed Ones?" Henry continued. "The most powerful witches, ever? Exactly how did Philip plan to kill them?
Tension filled the conference room. Edward seared his cousin with a deadly glare. "If you must know, Philip and the others managed to trap the Charmed Ones. And he would have killed them . . ."
". . . if it hadn't been for the McNeill witch," Suzanne finished. "Or should I say . . . bitch?" Her dark eyes radiated hostility. "I saw that she was the one who had discovered the location of our warehouse. In my visions." Edward nodded. He knew about Suzanne's ability to see the past. Unfortunately, her visions did not extend to the future. A minor problem he planned to remedy. Suzanne continued, "The McNeill woman, her telepath brother . . . and Belthazor were the ones responsible for the deaths of our cousins."
Agitated voices filled the room. "Belthazor?" Henry exclaimed. "I thought he was dead, thanks to the Charmed Ones!"
"He certainly was alive the last time I saw him," declared another Crozat. The person who spoke happened to be the youngest in the room. Cousin Rudolf. He also happened to be the son of Edward's late brother. Rudolf added bitterly, "Before he transformed me into a stone."
"Cousins, cousins!" Edward's voice rose above the others. "Please! Now in regard to Belthazor . . . as you all know, the whore of some male witch he had once killed had vanquished his demonic powers about a year ago. Then the Charmed Ones vanquished him again, after he became the Source, last spring." Edward paused. "But now he is back."
Henry asked, "Is he trying to take control of the Source’s Realm again?"
"I have no idea. As far as I know, he has not made any attempts to take control. At least not yet."
The fifth Crozat, a muscular man of medium height named Louis spoke up. "Are you sure? Why else would he help destroy most of our coven?"
Edward glanced at the anxious faces around the table. His eyes rested upon Suzanne, who eventually replied, "Apparently, he was only helping the McNeill witches to save the Charmed Ones. I gather from my visions that he is quite friendly with the female. Olivia."
"Not in love?" Rudolf asked.
A vindictive smile curved Edward's lips. "After Belthazor's experiences with the Charmed Ones, I doubt that romance with a witch is the last thing he wants."
Henry scowled. "Whether or not he is in love with this new witch, we still have to deal with him. Especially if he has the power of the Source."
"He doesn't," Edward replied curtly. He hesitated. "Unfortunately, since his return from the Wasteland, he has become more powerful than ever."
"That's just great!" Henry cried out with his usual pessimism. "Not only do we have the Charmed Ones to deal with, but also a more powerful Belthazor, and the McNeills witches! Quite frankly, I'd rather deal with the Halliwells alone. They may be the most powerful witches, but they're not as . . . cunning and difficult to kill as Belthazor or the McNeills."
Nodding, Edward replied, "And that is why we're here, tonight. To discuss our revenge against those who had killed our family. And take control of the Source’s Realm."
"And how do you propose we do that?"
Edward heaved a patient sigh. Moments like this made him wish Cousin Henry had been among those killed in the upheaval at the Tower Bay warehouse, nearly a month ago. "One," he began, "we will take care of Belthazor on our own. Suzanne will become a new client at the law firm he works for. Lure him to our office or her apartment, before we kill him." Edward paused dramatically. "And we'll kill him after we steal his powers."
Louis frowned. "How do you plan to do that?"
"Using a potion and a spell that I have discovered," Suzanne added. "Unlike the demon Barbas, we won't need a Charmed One to steal his powers. The potion I have created also has a hallucinogenic ingredient that will make it easy to deal with him."
Henry demanded, "What about the Charmed Ones? And the McNeills? I don't exactly relish going up against two powerful covens."
Edward smiled. Slowly. "We won't have to. A friend of mine in Singapore has sent a package that will do the job for us." His smile broadened. "Within a week or two, we'll have vengeance for our kinsmen's deaths. And we'll become the new rulers of the Source’s Realm."
* * * *
A low hum pierced the silence inside Captain McPherson's office. Inspectors Darryl Morris and Olivia McNeill of the San Francisco Police Department sat in chairs in front of his desk and watched him read the report in his hand.
The silence finally ended with a long sigh from the captain. He placed the report on his desk and glared at the two subordinates. "Is this it? This is all you were able to learn about the disappearance of . . . what, twenty-five, thirty people? All of the employees of the Tower Bay Import/Export Company?"
Both Olivia and Darryl exchanged uneasy glances. They knew exactly what had occurred at the Tower Bay warehouse. However, they also knew that the truth would only result in trouble for Olivia and possibly a heart attack for their captain.
Darryl coughed slightly. "That's about the gist of it, Captain," he said. "Olivia and I found no traces of bodies, blood or anything else."
"Except for a scorch mark," Captain McPherson grumbled. Darryl looked away. "Does anyone have an idea what caused the scorch mark?"
A pause followed before Olivia spoke up. "Forensics went over the mark, Captain. As far as they know, it was caused by fire."
"That's it? A fire?"
Olivia responded with a shrug.
The captain's eyes returned to the report. Then he asked, "What about the employees? What do you know about them?"
The two partners paused briefly. Darryl opened his mouth to speak, but Olivia beat him to the punch. "The company was owned by a Seattle-based corporation called MALEHEX. Both Darryl and I checked with Seattle PD. A family called Crozat owns the corporation. And we also learned that the Crozats were in the process of moving the corporation's headquarters down here to San Francisco."
"And?" Captain McPherson insisted.
Darryl took a deep breath. "We haven't been able to track down the remaining members of the family. Including the company's director, Philip Crozat." He paused, wishing he were at home or facing a perp's gunfire, instead of his captain. "It's all in the report."
"Which isn't much," the captain grumbled. He heaved another sigh. "Okay, it looks as if we have another unsolved case on our hands." He shot Darryl a pointed look. "Another one of your 'freaky cases', Morris."
Darryl tried to maintain a calm façade. It would have worked if Olivia had not opened her mouth. "Considering the number of 'freaky cases' that come our way, I'm surprised that the Department hasn't started its own X-Files division." A long, suffering sigh escaped Darryl's mouth. Of all the bad jokes . . . He glanced at Captain McPherson, who glared at the embarrassed Olivia.
"I assume that you two are still working on the DiMatteo case," Captain McPherson added darkly. "Since nothing new has cropped up, I suggest that you get back to work. Dismissed."
Neither Darryl or Olivia hesitated to follow the captain's orders. They quickly returned to their desks and Darryl took the moment to confront his partner. "What the hell was that about?" he demanded.
"What?" Olivia protested in innocence.
Darryl rolled his eyes. "The X-Files joke. Are you crazy?"
"So I forgot that Captain McPherson lacked a sense of humor," Olivia retorted. "So what? It's not the first time." She switched on her computer terminal.
Struggling to keep his irritation in check, Darryl continued, "Sometimes I think you like playing the devil's advocate just a little too much." He leaned forward, his eyes penetrating the red-haired woman's. "You're a first-class cop, McNeill. But you really need to learn when to keep that big mouth of yours, shut."
Olivia sighed. "You know, you almost sound like my aunt."
"Maybe she knew what she was talking about," Darryl shot back.
A grunt escaped Olivia's mouth. Her next words baffled Darryl. "If you knew the real truth about Aunt Rhiannon, Darryl, you wouldn't say that."
What the hell? "What? What are you . . . Oh God! Never mind!" Darryl heaved a sigh. Another thought came to his mind. "By the way, we have heard the last of these Crozats. Right?"
Olivia hesitated. Which did not help ease Darryl's fears. "Well, to tell you the truth," she began, "Cole and I aren't so sure."
Oh Lord! "What?" The word came out of Darryl's mouth like a gunshot.
Olivia then proceeded to tell Darryl about a Crozat warlock whom Cole Turner had transformed into a pebble. The image reminded Darryl of the time that son-of-a-bitch had transformed him into a water cooler. "Cole and I went back to the warehouse to find him," she continued. "Only . . ." She hesitated.
"Only what?" Darryl demanded.
"Only Cole wasn't able to transform him back. We think the warlock might be gone. It seems that a police guard had caught some kids on the property, throwing rocks, two days after the uh . . . incident. There's a chance that one of those rocks happened to be the warlock. And he probably changed back into his original form upon impact on the ground."
Despair overcame Darryl faster than an incoming wave. He visibly wilted before Olivia. "Oh God," he murmured. "That warlock . . . did he . . .?"
Olivia shook her head. "The patrolman and the kids are still alive." She paused. "Unfortunately . . ."
". . . we still have a warlock roaming about San Francisco," Darryl finished through clinched teeth.
If that was not bad enough, according to Olivia, there seemed to be a chance that the McNeills and the Halliwells might have to deal with more than one Crozat warlock. According to her friend from the Seattle Police, someone had closed MALEHEX's Seattle office permanently. When Darryl failed to respond, Olivia added uneasily, "Darryl? Are you okay?"
A long, dry sigh slowly eased out of his mouth. "I was just wondering," Darryl said in a tired voice, "if matters can get any worse."
Before Olivia could respond, a tall, handsome man with dark hair and blue eyes, and wearing an expensive blue suit, approached her desk. Olivia smiled. He returned the smile with a wide one of his own. "Hey Olivia, ready for lunch?"
Darryl groaned. Cole Turner glanced at him, looking slightly concerned. "Hey Darryl. Something wrong?"
A morose Darryl grumbled, "Yeah, I think my day just got worse."
END CHAPTER 1
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