First things first: Buffy The Vampire Slayer and all characters are created by Joss Wheadon and the rights to each character belong to FOX and UPN. Fatal Fury belongs to SNK/NEO GEO. Soooo.....in other words I do not own any of the characters found in this story, however, the story concept belongs to me.
Our story begins on the night of the episode "Bad Girls". The Slayers get ambushed by a
new threat and framed for murder. The odds appear overwhelming for the Chosen Two and company but thankfully for them Terry Bogard is in town, a powerful, new ally.
Spoilers: Depends-if you like this story then I will take it into its own continuum which I promise will be excellent or I will simply close end it, making sure Buffy's universe has the same outcome.
Author's note(s): "(dialogue)" = characters thinking
Distribution: I want to be e-mailed if you are interested in posting this story, the main thing I will ask for is being given credit. All you gotta do is ask nicely ;)
Special thanks: Doublereppuken, bigjackmcbastard_supersob, Danpukyuka and cow_man_kly
Please review after reading, I can take criticism of all kinds.
Thanks for reading! ^_^
The Moon hangs high in the night sky illuminating the highway. It's white/blue glow spans over the California countryside like a spotlight splashing on a stage hosting a Shakespearean play. Cactuses, power lines, sandy hills and the asphalt of the road are covered by the beams of the lunar beacon giving them a slight tint of cyan. The air is crisp and dry and is being pushed by a slight breeze blowing from the Northwest.
California's country air is also carrying a loud, ripping sound of a red motorcycle going Northwest en route to Oakland, the driver has got someone to meet there, someone important to him. The Cycle's engine whirrs wildly as the driver presses the accelerator down to generate speeds ranging between 70-85 miles per hour, breaking the speed limit and not giving a damn. Billboards, street lamps, mileage postings and mail boxes pass through the peripheral vision of the driver while driving at these high speeds forcing him to pay little or no attention to each passing object.
Due to this night-riding traveler, animals, insects and homeowners along the road look on the loud bike passing through. With such a multitude of eyes peering at him, making him and his bike their focus of attention...even if it is just a blur, it would make anyone else uneasy. That eerie feeling of being watched would shake anyone else to the point of checking his or her appearance in the mirrors to adjust or erase any insecurities...but not this driver....he has seen elements many times more frightening. Being watched is part of who he is. For this driver wears a white star on his back, a red baseball cap with a reflective plate on the front and the gloves given to him by his late father, all of which have become his trademark, all of which has made him recognizable to thousands of adoring fans. A long, blonde ponytail flapping from the bottom of his skull further cements who is upon the cycle. This driver is none other than Martial Arts champ, Terry Bogard.
Enjoying his late night ride, Terry can smell nature on the wind in all is freshness. The wind against his face, arms and chest give him a sense of freedom riding his motorcycle can only give. Granted, Terry is in a hurry on his long drive but he never fails to pay attention to the benefits of a Californian night. Alongside Terry's cycle is a sidecar of the same color as the bike. In it is Terry's gray duffle bag tied up at the top with two long nylon ropes and it rests on its brown bottom firmly upon the seat.
Terry's mind is on his close friends; Joe Higashi, Mai Shiranui and Terry's brother Andy. In Oakland this weekend a Muay Thai convention is being held and Joe was asked to be a special guest speaker. Joe is still the reigning Muay Thai Kickboxing champion of Japan making him a fitting choice for the convention. Terry has not seen his companions since the Real Bout tournament held a few months ago.
A smile widened on Terry's face while thinking about getting together with his friends. Terry lives in Southtown, California but the other three live Japan so when they can spend time together it is a big deal. "(Man, it'll be an eventful weekend I'm sure.)" Terry thought, Andy is the only element of family he has in his life and together they are like wolves, constantly watching the other's back. Joe and Mai rounded out their wolfpack, unstopable whenever united. This reminiscent feeling would soon be interrupted by another feeling entirely:: hunger..
Terry's stomach made a sickening gurgling sound. An uncomfortable hunger pain shot through his upper abdomen signaling his tank had hit empty. Looking down on his motorcycle Terry noticed his gas tank was also running low. Bringing his consciousness fully on the road, Terry noticed a road-sign reading "Sunnydale 4 mi." Riding over a hill overlooking the horizon, Terry could see the town wasn't far off from the highway. "Hmm, looks like it's off to the side of the highway" He said to himself, "Hardly out of the way. Gas up the hog and grab some grub and I should still make it to Oakland by 1am." With that thought in tow, he turns on the gas a little more to maintain his high speed.
Coming up on a left turn in the road, The Lone Wolf lets up on the accelerator and leans to his left forcing more weight on that side in order to execute the turn, had he not done so, he would be one long streak of blood, guts, and hair. "Guess I gotta learn to slow down at the right times...that was kinda close."
About to turn up the speed again, the idea is shot down when the exit to Sunnydale seemed to appear out of nowhere. In spite of no other vehicles being nearby, Terry flips on the right-hand turn signal and slows his cycle down again to turn on to the exit which will lead him to Sunnydale.
The exit itself is not long at all, within a few seconds, Terry is on the highway taking him to the city limits. A minute or so goes by as the friendly countryside homes are passed by the red cycle. A stray brown and white, small dog comes from behind one of the mailboxes on the side of the road and begins to bark at Bogard while following him along the shoulder of the road. Terry sees the pooch and smiles slightly just before seeing a large sign reading "Sunnydale Welcomes You".
The sign is large in comparison to other town greeting signs, it stands high on two long beams of steel that are round and about a foot in diameter. The height of the actual sign is about ten feet tall and the width about twenty feet wide. The friendly greeting stretches across the sign by starting with large lettering in middle and gradually getting smaller giving the greeting slanting upward effect. Underneath the greeting a drawing of the school and students stands just above some more words informing the reader who the mayor of the town is, Mr. Richard Wilkins III. Below his name is the Deputy Mayor, Allan Finch, followed by members of the school board, the High School Sports teams' nickname, The Razorbacks, and then the various businesses of the town.
Having never been to Sunnydale before, Terry is at a loss in knowing where to go. He is hungry, very hungry. Just thinking of a charbroiled burger topped with cheese, tomatoes, pickles and onions makes the very hungry wolf's mouth salivate. A Diner must be found NOW! Thanks to his rotten luck, the exit into town has placed him in a residential area of the city. Coming up to a Stop sign, Terry slows the bike down to a halt and takes a look around. All he sees are houses, houses, and more houses.
Using his instincts, Bogard decides to keep going straight. Releasing the clutch slowly while putting some gas to the accelerator, Terry goes down another block to find another stop sign he has to stop for. Turning his head from left to right he still sees nothing but the homes of the Sunnydale citizens. Still no sign of a place to eat. Not giving in to his immediate reaction of fist clenching anger, Terry revs up the engine once more going in the same direction.
At yet another stop sign Terry's eyes find a chain link fence surrounding an entire block. There is a sidewalk around this block which appears to be about a quarter of a mile around in the shape of a rectangle. The fence is sunk into the ground which is raised slightly since the north side of the block is downhill. Inside the fence is an entire blacktop area. There are four tennis courts, each with one net and maroon surface with white boundary lines, a couple of shuffle puck triangles and five basketball courts that are not quite full size and each rim complete with a nylon net.
"Maybe I'll run into some friendly locals," Terry thought, "Just as good a lead as any."
One of the basketball courts, the one closest to the east side of the fence, has four young lads playing some two-on-two. With the exception of one smaller white boy, they all look about twelve or thirteen years old. Seeing these four young 'ens as obvious locals, Terry parks the cycle at the curb and walks through a separation in the fence marked by two poles ending two sides of the fence. As Terry gets closer to the boys, he can begin to see some physical description of each boy.
One of the boys is dressed in a black mesh Fila basketball jersey and wearing long, white shorts. His skinny frame causes the shirt to look even more baggy, the left strap of the jersey tends to slide down the boy's shoulder and nearly fall off. He has a visor on backward resting upon his shaved head. The pigment of his skin indicates he is an African American. Looking down at the boy's feet Terry noticed he had a pair of red Converses on...the same kind Terry wears. "The kid's got style." Terry said softly to himself as he smiled.
Another boy has deep, olive colored skin. He is shorter than the other three boys and is also very thin in build. Slicked back black hair is holding in place due to what appears to be the gloss of much hair gel. His eyes are big and light brown with small eyebrows over each eye socket. Over his torso rests an off-white tank top hanging to about mid-thigh covering his turquoise mesh shorts. White socks are pulled up to his ankles and he is wearing a pair of white and navy blue Reeboks.
The last two boys appear to be brothers. Both are white and have slender body types. One is taller than the other by about three inches and has light brown hair cut short and combed to the right. He has no shirt on, displaying his athletic physique and tanned torso. Black windbreaker pants cover his legs and on his feet are black Nikes. His little brother(or so it appears) has a red sleeveless shirt on with black shorts. He looks a lot like his big brother having his build and similar facial features. Both boys have hazel eyes with fairly bushy eyebrows and they both have a small nose.
"Put it up, KG!" The younger white boy said. At that moment, the boy with the visor on his head springs from his legs pointing his toes down toward the ground and lifting himself into the air about fifteen feet away from the basket. His arms rise up above his head holding the ball in his right hand with his left guiding the ball from falling. Once at the peak of his jump, the boy extends his right arm snapping his wrist with a follow through resembling a fishhook. The taller white boy jumped up with him to block the shot but to no avail, the orange ball is airborne spinning seam over seam in reverse as it hits it's height in the air and begins to come down toward the red cylinder.
CLANGOOSH! The ball hits the inside of the rim and ricochets through the hole giving he and the younger brother a point.
"Yeah! Nice shot, KG!" The little brother beamed.
"All right, Matt, we're up by two!" The African American replied.
Terry took this break in the action to approach the four hoopsters, "Hey guys, the name's Terry." he began, "I'm looking for a place to eat. You guys know a good burger joint?"
"Oh yeah," said the Hispanic boy, "your momma's house!"
All four boys erupted in laughter giving their witty friend high fives. "Good one, Tony." KG said.
This made Terry slightly miffed, he was hungrier than Fat Bastard at a Nursery, and these boys weren't helping.
"Look, kid," started Terry, "I've never been here before and I haven't eaten in a few hours. I'm getting crabby, so why don't you be a good little boy and tell me where I can find a place to eat...then I might not tell your mommy you're out past your bed time."
"Ooooohhh," KG, Matt and his big brother chimed.
"Ok, fool," Tony retorted, "shows how smart you are, it's Friday night so there's no school tomorrow and I don't have a curfew anyway."
"Yeah, so beat it, trucker-man" KG retorted, "We got business to tend to." KG put up another shot while he and his friends were waiting to start the game up again.
Now Terry was mad, especially after KG's remark. He never had this much difficulty with the youths over in Southtown. In fact, Terry is used to the respect and good nature he gets from kids in Southtown or anywhere else. KG's shot was off the mark, it hit the back of the rim sending it fairly high above the rim. Seeing this as an opportunity, Terry leaped high into the air catching the ball in his palm and forcing the ball through the hoop while hanging on the rim.
SLAM!!!! The ball went powerfully through the hoop as Terry rebounded the ball into a slam-dunk. Dead silence followed, only the thud of the ball bouncing on the blacktop filled the ears each individual.
Terry landed on the ground on two feet and stood tall. His back facing the boys, each of them stood quietly observing his six foot athletic frame. Terry clenched his fists then released them into a relaxed state.
Seconds passed by like minutes until finally, KG spoke up. "Look, man," a hesitant tone came from his voice, "You're not in the presence of just anybody. You're standing on the future California state champs! We're the best Sunnydale will ever have on their basketball team!" The boy's hesitant tone had ironed back out to confident, his normal tone, after a few words. At this Terry turned around.
"Really?" Terry questioned, "So you guys are supposed to be good? This is your stomping ground? I get it. How about we make a deal?"
The taller white boy gulped, "What kind of deal?"
"I'll take all four of you guys on at once in a game of hoops." Terry's bill of his hat positioned barely above his eyes revealed his face enough to show the bows he was smiling and meant no harm, thus lowering himself to the boys' level...bait. He was not about to let a bunch of prepubescent boys get the best of him.
Each of the boys breathed a deep sigh of relief, their faces swelling up with confidence and arrogance.
"You want to take us all on?" Tony retorted, "Essay, you loco?"
"I say we give him what he wants." The taller white boy said.
"Sounds good, Dan," KG began, "Then he'll know not to step up to Sunnydale's top dawgs!"
"Where is the deal?" Mathew asked, knowing the deck is in his favor.
"The deal is this," started Terry, "If you guys win, then you guys get a Pizza dinner on me and I will be your butler during the meal." Each of the kids began to get excited. "But if I win..." Terry smiled and lifted his hat a tad with his right hand, "You guys will lead me to the best burger joint in town and be my servants while I eat."
Each of the boys began to laugh. "What do you say guys?" KG asked his compadres. They all gave an affirming nod.
"Yeah, we'll even let you have the ball first." Dan said, flipping him the orange sphere.
"This is winner-outs." stated KG, "That way when you actually score you'll have another chance to do somethin' wit the ball. By the way, blacktop rules are always ones and twos, we'll play up to five so we can get this over with quick."
"Are you sure you wanna play make-it-take-it?" Terry asked dribbling the ball past the 3-point line. "You may not get the ball back, you'll blink and the game will be over."
"Oh-ho! I don't think so!" KG claimed, "You're about to go up against Kenny Garrison, I got moves like da pros. You ain't gettin' nothin' on me."
"KG? Ah, I see, just like..."
"Kevin Garnett!" boasted KG, "I got moves just like he got."
"Ok," Terry started, dribbling the ball with his right hand and turning his hat with his left so the adjustable strap showed on his forehead, "Here we go, check the ball." Terry flipped the ball to Dan who in turn passed the ball right back to Terry. "I'm really hungry, can't wait to sink my teeth into some beef!"
"Yeah right, I'm gonna be chowin' on some piz-" Dan began to boast but was cut off by Terry's quick right to left crossover driving right past Dan to the left corner of the lane. To seal the lane off from Terry's drive, Matthew ran up to where The Lone Wolf blew by his brother and dropped into a defensive stance bending his knees at a 45 degree angle resting on the balls of his feet. Knowing his drive through the middle of the lane was cut off, Terry continues dribbling with his left hand deecking to the right quickly and exploding to the left.
This time Terry is met by both Tony and KG side by side. Drops into a defensive stance to prevent the Hakyokosaiken master from going into the lane and getting a good shot. Tony cuts off the base line and goes for the steal forcing Terry to stop dribbling altogether, cradling the ball with two hands. Protecting the ball by keeping it close to his body, Terry now must look for a good shot. The two brothers begin to close on Terry as well, Dan rushing in behind him and Matt waiting for Terry to place the ball low so he may pounce on it. With all four boys surrounding him, The Lone Wolf chooses to use his size to his advantage. The tallest of the boys, KG, stands near 5'9'', Dan is maybe an inch shorter, pivoting on his right foot and turning his body 180 degrees, Terry sizes up his next move.
Pivoting once again on his right foot then taking his rule given step, Terry holds the ball up near his cheek dropping his right arm to create some distance between him, Tony and KG. His left arm arcs itself with ball in hand, Dan sees what's going on and races near the hoop to ready himself for the rebound. Terry's left arm completes it's movement snaps at the wrist allowing the ball to spin off his fingertips. Performing a baby skyhook reminiscent of L.A. Lakers' legend, Magic Johnson, the ball finds it's mark. Swoosh!!! Nothin' but net as the saying goes! All four boys appear disappointed, cursing under their breathe.
"Whatever, that was luck!" proclaimed Tony.
KG began to say something as well but Terry paid no mind to the what was coming out of his mouth. What suddenly caught Terry's attention was a sensation of power within a body approaching. The aura hinted then retracted just as quickly. "Hmm," He said to himself, "That's odd. Awell, musn't be anything to worry about." Getting back to the matter at hand, Terry walked up to the three point line with a sly grin. Dan was there to meet him again to check the ball.
"You gonna pay attention this time?" Terry wryly spoke, "Or am I going to march down and score on you again?"
"Just check the ball, hippie-head."
Dan checked the ball in to Terry by giving him a light bounce pass. Terry took one dribble right at him, Dan backed off giving Terry all the daylight he needed. Taking one step back behind the three point line, Terry is up in the air. A jump shot with proper and efficient technique finds the ball making a rainbow-like arc B-lining to hoop. Swoosh!!! Another complete nylon shot by Bogard putting ahead of Sunnydale's upencoming, 3-0.
"DAMN!" Dan and Tony shouted in unison.
"What the hell, Dan?" KG said accusingly. The boys began to argue with each other over their trailing score but Terry soon tuned them out. He could sense something coming, something of pure evil.
"GUYS!" Shouted Terry, each of them shutting their mouths and turning their faces to Terry. "Get out of here...NOW!!!" Immediately following his command, four hideous looking men dressed in tunics with a brown vertical stripe down the middle and horizontal stripes branching off from the vertical one appeared. The Lone Wolf could sense that they meant to create harm to him and the boys.
Matt, was the first among his friends to see these creatures, "Dan! I want mommy!" His voice grew tight as he finished he plea to his big brother. Dan almost didn't hear what Matt had said and their friends did not appear to hear at all. Terry heard the boy's cry, though, and that fueled his spirit. He was not about to let the oncoming abominations hurt these innocent boys.
"Boys, please! Run home, run as fast as you can!" Bogard pleaded.
Something was not right about these four. With a more concentrated look at them, Terry noticed each man had an oddly formed nose, wrinkles over the bridge. The forehead on each man appears a swelled and puffy, while the pair of eyes appears ruthless, full of hate. Each of their ears reached to a point, even more noticeable than the elements on their faces. Normally, Terry would find these four to be nothing more than coincidental deformed people who found comradery amongst each other but as soon as one of them opened his mouth, Terry noticed his canine teeth were longer than any other in his mouth...longer and pointier. "Vampires!" Terry shouted aloud, his voice grew to confusion, "Vampires!?! Nah, I'm seeing things." The four vampires were getting closer and closer to the hero of Southtown, Terry began to brace himself, not knowing what to expect.
The first vamp advanced toward Terry head on, sidestepping to his right and bending his knees, Terry throws his left leg out tripping the vampire at mid-shin. An unwanted small summersault is the result, sending the vampire flush on his back. Terry follows up the trip-counter by coming down on the nose of the vampire with a clenched fist. The recipient appears stunned but Terry does not have enough time to make sure of it, three more of the same have to go down.
Gritting his teeth, rising to his feet, another creature of the night advances in similar fashion of his downed comrade. The vampire has his arms extended, palms open looking to grasp the Lone Wolf. His mouth is also open enough to show his teeth are just as pointy as the other. Tucking his right arm near his waist, Terry rolls his fingers into his gloved hand and tightens his fist. Keeping his knees bent, Terry steps into the path of the oncomer, extending his legs, twisting his hips, and throwing his right arm up connecting under the vampire's chin with his fist. "Ughn!" expressed the victim of Terry's uppercut while he is sent into the air before landing five feet away.
"I don't know what's going on here but whatever these psychos are, they're gonna pay for thinkin' they could try to mess with..." Terry's vocal thoughts are interrupted by the oncoming two vamps.
The next two vampires came charging in, one behind the other. Awaiting a two-pronged attack, Terry is surprised when the vampire in back leaps high over the lead performing a flip and kicking Terry in the face before he can bring up his block. Terry is spun around 360 degrees and bounces off the chain link fence behind him. Once off the fence, Terry feels the brunt of a punch in the stomach by the Vampire who was running in front of the jump-kicking vampire. A forearm smash to the face follows the punch from the same vampire, "Argh!" Came the whence of pain from Terry. The jump-kicking vampire now joins his teammate in the pummeling, both taking turns nailing Terry in the face, abdomen and chest.
The young lads who Terry had shooed away had not gotten far. They are standing about thirty feet away on the other side of the fence, KG had seen Terry trip up and slam the first vampire and wanted to watch what he would do to the other three. "Man, now he's getting his ass whooped!" KG sounded concerned while belittling the Lone Wolf. As for KG's friends, each of them had a fixed gaze on Terry and did not speak a word. Matt broke the silence in an instant, "C'mon, Terry!" He shouted as loud as he could, "Take 'em out!"
Hearing the youngest of the youths cry out to him, Terry is reminded of the young boys and girls who look up to him in Southtown. All the children who do not have families of their own just like him, just like he had growing up. Most of those boys and girls are left without family due to the selfishly evil Southtown underlord, Geese Howard. Geese Howard took the life of Terry's father, Jeff Bogard, after he discovered Master Tung Fu Rue was about to pass on the secrets of the Hakyokusaiken school of martial arts to Jeff and not him. The day Geese did just that was a day Terry will never forget...the lives of him and his brother were changed forever. Seeing these vampires as four Geese Howards all of the sudden, Terry's fury begins to rise. No way will he let those four young lives become shattered like Geese did to him and Andy. No one deserves that...especially ones so young.
One of the vampires involved in the onslaught kicks Terry square in the face...but Terry does not budge. The other attempts a right hook but the vampire's punch is stopped at the wrist by Terry's hand. Lifting his head up a tad, both vampires can see Terry's eyes...and they are brilliantly glowing red. Terry steps his left foot forward turning his back to the vampire not in Terry's grasp, Terry then thrusts his left palm into other vampire's held arm at the top half and breaks the arm at it's elbow and gives him a short kick to the ribs followed up by a 180 degree jump kick to send him next to his friend who was laid out by Terry's uppercut.
The Vampire howls in great pain and hits the pole of the hoop on the other side of the court, slumping down slowly. The other vamp takes the opportunity of being behind Terry to go for a bite to the neck. Turning his body by pivoting on his right foot, Terry throws out his left arm at shoulder height with his fist balled up. The vampire is backfisted by Terry with great fury and strength, opportunity missed. This vampire bounces off the fence just as Terry had a minute ago, "Paybacks' a bitch...ain't it?" Terry snickers at his opponent. Gathering his ki, Terry raises his fist into the air and strikes his fist into the ground in perfect timing with the Vampire's rebound, "Round Wave!" A light blue/yellow glow surrounds the forefront of Terry's fist and hits the Vampire. The Vamp bellows painfully as he is thrown into the fence once again by the painful impact of Terry's Round Wave.
Bouncing off the fence again, Terry grabs the Vamp by the top of his tunic and slams him overhead onto the blacktop with his buster-throw. Looking around, Terry notices each of the Vampires are down and do not appear to be getting up anytime soon.
Taking two steps towards his newfound friends, Terry calls out to them, "HEY! I TOLD YOU GUYS TO RUN AWAY!" Terry cupped his hands around his mouth to project his voice.
"WE HAD TO WATCH YOU KICK THEIR ASSES, MAN!" Tony shouted back. The other three boys chuckled at Tony's comment, "THAT WAS COO, BRO! YOU AITE WIT ME!" added KG.
A smile widened on Terry's face when Matt noticed, "TERRY, BEHIND YOU!"
All four vamps had regained consciousness, once again attempting to take care of The Lone Wolf. The recipient of the Ground Wave was on one knee and was not making way toward Terry like the others were but he did not look to happy.
Terry's face snapped from cheerful to bitter anger. "You asked for it, YOU BASTARDS DON'T KNOW WHEN TO QUIT! DO YA?" Terry began to concentrate his ki into his fist as it was held high in the air similarly to how it was just before the Ground Wave was performed. Slamming his right fist into the ground again only this time chanting, "POWER GEYSER!!!" Terry slams his left fist down immediately after and then his right again. Three magnificent beams of blue/yellow energy came out in succession from the ground, sending all four vampires into the air, searing their unholy skin with each beam. Three of the four vampires were turned to dust after taking all three blasts from the Power Geyser, the vampire with the broken arm, however, survived.
He was on the end of each blast and did not receive as much damage as his comrades. After the third strike from the Power Geyser, he was sent over the fence behind the portable biff that sat along chain-link. His bottom half did not take as much damage as his top half did. His legs were hurting and his pants had several rips but his broken arm was dissolved by the three powerful blasts and his face was half gone. The socket where the arm used to be was also taken with Terry's move and a good portion of his chest was blown away as well. In a world of hurt, the Vampire got up and walked as well as he could to report to Balthazar what had happened.
Turning his attention immediately toward the boys after the third geyser, Terry did not see what happened to his opponents. For all he knows they could be cultists that were hideously deformed.
The kids had come from the other side of the fence to meet Terry, "Dang, man!" Dan was flabbergasted, "Where did you learn to do that?"
"Well, I..."
"Geeze, bro," KG interrupted, "That was waaaay awesome!"
"Can you teach us how to all that stuff you just did?" asked Tony.
"Please, Terry?" Matt looked up at Terry with his big, innocent brown eyes. His hands were folded under his chin, those brown eyes of his like an awestruck sheep looking at a new sheppard. Terry almost melted with the boy's plea. So young yet so eager. Terry put his right hand on Matt's head and had to turn the boy and his friends down. "Sorry, guys," he grabbed the tip of his hat with the other hand, "I'm...still training myself, I can't take on a student just yet. Besides," he continued, "your families need you. Your friends need you...remember...you're all going to be heroes in this town someday."
Though a bit disappointed by Terry's rejection, each boy had declared a new idol in their life, a new role-model to look up to. The grown-up knowledge of nearly being killed had not escaped their young minds either, they were so close to having all their hopes and dreams taken from them. But thanks to this hippie-headed trucker-man, each young 'en had a new lease on life.
"Sorry I was such a wise ass to ya, brotha." Tony offered his hand in a cool handshake. Terry met Tony's hand with his own and the other boys followed suit in offering apologies, giving fives, and shaking hands. Matt was so thankful, he gave Terry a hug.
Terry headed to his motorcycle to be on his way. The boys walked with him to extend their time with the young legend. As Terry sat down, he turned the key in the ignition and was about to kick start the bike when....
"Hey," KG started with a head nod, "If you go about five blocks down that way and take a left, you'll run right into an all night diner. Awesome cheese-burgers there, man!"
"Alright, thanks." Said Terry, kick starting his bike, Terry waved goodbye to the boys while they ran with him for about two blocks then Terry kicked up the accelerator and made his way to follow KG's instructions.
Engine rumbling down the five blocks, the bike comes to a halt at a set of lights. Terry apparently had ended up at downtown Sunnydale, looking to his left he could see the diner KG must have been talking about. It was a long, subway car-shaped building chrome in color. Longer than it was wide, the diner appeared to look similar to a silver bullet. The lights on the inside were beaming out of every widow Terry could see. Being about two blocks away, Terry could only make out silhouettes sitting alongside each window.
Taking notice to the light controlling the intersection had changed from red to green, Terry turned his left-turn signal on quickly in courtesy to the maroon van across the street desiring to go straight. Pushing his cycle with his legs, Terry wanders into the intersection slowly while he waits for the van to drive by. Once Terry's lane is clear, he pulls the accelerator back and the cycle picks up speed in the right lane. With the eatery in sight, the smell of grease fills Terry's senses and all he can think is, "Mmmm, can't wait to sink my teeth into some fries." Salivating at the mouth due to this sense stimulus, Terry also craves onion rings deeply. "Looks like a big, late-night supper for this guy."
The Diner is on his right, the parking lot has plenty of room for his bike but about half of the parking spaces are taken up. A tall, light sign stands near the sidewalk, boasting the name "Stanley's". Hungrier than ever now, Terry pulls into the parking lot and stops his bike at a parking spot about twenty feet from the front entrance.
Pulling his duffel bag out of the sidecar, Terry approaches the front entrance and walks into the restaurant. The inside looks peaceful, a set of 10 stools stand at a counter that wraps around a corner with four stools occupied by four men. All four men sit within one seat between each other, three at the lengthier side of the counter, one at the wrapped around side, they talk with the waitress and each other as if they are all friends. The floor is checkered with navy blue and white, a five-foot wide aisle separates the stools from navy blue booths set near the windows on Terry's left. Noticing a sign near the entrance reading "Please Seat Yourself" Terry steps toward his left to do just that. Walking over to a booth, Terry passes by a middle aged waitress dressed in a navy blue dress with white trim behind the counter, "Hello" she said while filling a cup of coffee for one of the men at the counter. "Hi" Terry replied with a smile. Terry set his bag down along the seat across the table from the one he was going to sit on after finding a seat in one of the booths, . A reflective coated hat and coat rack is attached to each booth with a pocket at booth's height holding a menu. Removing his hat from his head, Terry sets his hat on the rack above where he put his bag and grabs a menu. "Jane will be right with you." the same waitress informed Terry. The Lone Wolf flashed a thankful smile back at her to.
"Heh," One man at the counter started, "Look at this guy, he must be one of those fru-fru types from San Francisco. Hahahaha!" As Terry turned around he saw an older man, probably in his fifties, laughing hysterically. The tone of the laugh matched the tone of the voice, Terry could tell this flannel-clad, mustacioed, netted-cap-wearing, heavy-set doughnut gorger was the obnoxious fool who made the ignorant comment about Terry. Another dead give-away, perhaps, was he was laughing louder than anyone else at the counter. The other men chuckled slightly but not to the point as the culprit was.
Terry then fixed a glare upon the loud-mouth. Once the brash idiot returned his attention to Terry, he noticed Terry's eyes burning a whole right through his own. The man's smiles fled immediately from his face and a look of worry arose. His feet tucked in under the stool and he turned around to face the counter again. Terry did not have to say a word, the fool got the hint.
"If looks could kill," another younger, slender waitress dressed in the same garb as the other said as she appeared, "Harold, you'd be dead."
"But since they can't," one of the other men spoke, "he shit his pants instead!" The entire troupe sitting at the counter, with the exception of Harold, erupted in laughter. Any louder and they would have popped the roof off of the foundation. Terry grinned after having heard the guffaws following the snide remark by the other man. Normally, Terry would not waste his time even giving a guy like Harold attention, but the events that just transpired put his mood on edge. Had he not been at the court, would those boys have been killed? This thought and others just like it have been filling Terry's mind since he left the basketball courts. Terry could now put his mind at rest...Jane was the waitress who suddenly appeared. Reaching in her apron for the tablet to take Terry's order, she flips the first page holding the tablet in her left hand and brings up a pencil to it with her right. "Hey there, handsome," her angelic face spoke, "what can I getcha?" Terry looks at her with a smile and begins to place an order. Suddenly, the place just got friendlier.
Sunnydale: Not too far away
Standing alongside a light post found on a street corner is a tall man with slick black blonde hair. His coiffure also boasts short, buzzed dark brown hair which complements his dyed yellow top. A white feather jacket with a feathery collar drapes over the man's frame causing his physique to be hidden yet not taking away from his masculinity. Fingerless gloves are tucked slightly underneath the cuffs of the feather jacket covering his powerful hands. Jet-black Ray-Bans cover his eyes further enhancing his chiseled chin and cheekbones making visage intimidating. Black slacks fit loosely around his long legs with a foundation of two black boots at the end of each leg. Alone he stands, alone and waiting, waiting for his temporary accomplice.
"Yamazaki," called out a voice from behind him, "over here, c'mon." Turning around, Yamazaki finds a white man standing about 5'9'' dressed in a gray suit coat and pants with a black neck tie wrapped around the collar of a white button-up shirt. The man is very skinny and appears to be weak in build as his suit displays no muscle tone from underneath. His hair is dark, cut short, slicked back emphasizing his forehead and dark eyebrows.
"Finch," Yamazaki said to himself, "you lapdog-types make me laugh when you try to take charge."
The man who called out to him was Deputy Mayor, Allan Finch. Given specific orders by Mayor Richard Wilkins III, Finch is about to take Yamazaki to some activity between the slayers and Balthazar's minions.
Climbing up to the rooftop of a building, Yamazaki and Finch make their way to a lookout tower where Finch will point out the difference between Balthazar's Vampires and the Mayor's Vampires.
Once on top of the roof, the two walked over to the West side of the building. The town is a sea of yellow and orange lights. If there is one place in the world that lives up to its name it is Sunnydale. Even at night you can find each street lit up with department stores' front window boasting the new look for the season. Each street lamp hangs high above the curb of the sidewalk making the parking spot underneath a welcome one. This is also the side of town you will find the Chosen Two on patrol.
Walking down a dark street are two young ladies, one blonde-haired, blue eyed, petit, wearing a black coat, black jeans and sporting a ponytail is looking around, surveying the perimeter for any unsafe activity. The other girl, dark-haired, brown eyes, slender, slightly taller than the other wearing a long sleeved white shirt covered with a black vest and black jeans, seems to be walking at a slightly quicker pace than her blonde counterpart. Together, the two girls anticipate danger with each step knowing that in the blink of an eye they could be attacked.
Utilizing a pair of binoculars, Finch observes the girls movements, "The blonde one is Buffy Summers," Finch stated in an informative tone like something from out of a documentary, "The other is known as Faith. These two girls are the Slayers that Mr. Wilkins wants you to take out."
"Wilkins should know he's lucky he caught me," Yamazaki said as-matter-of-factly, "I would have been on my way back to Hong Kong by now but I could always use a few more million in my pocket." Yamazaki pulls off his jacket and lets it fall to the floor. He has a black vest on over a black, long-sleeved collarless shirt.
"Well," Finch choked then handed the binoculars to Yamazaki, "No one said you had to take this job."
"Hmph, when I finish my rounds in this freakland, Wilkins will be extremely grateful he hired me...and so will I, you never told me these girls were so....voluptuous." Licking his lips after having voiced his approval of the girls' looks, Yamazaki notices the blond-girl holding an oak stake. He can also see the dark haired girl with a hunting bow in her grasp, struggling to load it with an arrow.
"That thing childproof?" The blonde one remarked.
"Very funny, B-" the other was about to finish when...
"Faith!" The blonde cut off the other as she was nearly struck in the back by a hideous looking man dressed in a tan tunic with a brown strip vertically up the middle and horizontal stripes branching off from the middle one. Faith quickly ducks the oncoming ambush attempt by the humanoid creature.
"The attackers are Balthazar's henchmen." Finch informed Yamazaki.
"If they get in my way, I'll kill 'em."
"That's what you are getting paid for."
"Who is Balthazzar anyway?"
"He's a very powerful demon looking to take his powers to the next level." Finch turned to Yamazaki, "His followers are very devoted and wield a sword in each had, one shorter and the other longer. Little do they know they are playing for the losing team. Hehe"
Yamazaki pulls away from the binoculars slightly to roll his eyes. "(Where did Wilkins find this guy?)" To make Finch feel insignificant, Yamazaki gives no reply to the deputy mayor's boast. Pressing his brow against the binoculars again, Yamazaki studies how his soon-to-be opponents fight. His battle knowledge encourages his curiosity to find strengths and weaknesses in both girls' styles, watching the chosen two carefully. He's already been filled in on Buffy's and Faith's supernatural abilities courtesy of Finch.
"Hee-yeah!" A jump-kick to the chest of one ugly vampire by Faith sent the creature into a throng of garbage cans. Still trying to load the longbow, as more of a means of accomplishment than using it as a weapon, Faith sees her foe regrouping and attempting another assault. Her efforts to load the bow still come up short. Giving up on the bow all together, Faith caulks the arrow above her head and makes toward the creature of the night, "Screw it!" Bringing the wooden dart down on the heart of her persevering adversary, Faith chalks up another vampic scalp. The body around the sharp object is suddenly disintegraded into ashes and disappears to nothingness. Faith is now found putting her hands above her head, arms bent at the elbows, doing a little victory dance with quick thrust of her pelvis, "Ugh". Her face smirking an arrogant expression quickly turns back to battle ready, she wants to finish this patrol.
Buffy also has her hands full, out on a boulevard she is facing two of Balthazar's minions. One has short, brown hair and the other has long, black hair. Both stand taller than Buffy and are broad in build. Flanking Buffy from her left and right, the long haired one comes in from the left swinging a short sword with his left hand aiming for her midsection. Buffy manages to sway to her right avoiding the strike but the attacker's miss is followed up by a long sword in his right hand coming over head. Sensing the Vampire coming in from the right, Buffy cartwheels left to let the other Vampire get sliced by his companion. Immediately, the short haired vampire is turned to dust, leaving Buffy one-on-one with the sword swinger.
"Those swords kill the vampires," Yamazaki observed from high above, "interesting."
Flailing each sword in a circular fashion, the creature walks toward Buffy slowly, shouting grunts in an attempt to intimidate her. Remaining still, Buffy waits for her opponent to get just close enough, "(That's right, just keep on coming.)" she thought.
All of the sudden stopping about a foot in front of her with both swords along each side of his body, Buffy finds him right where she wants him. Straightening her right arm, an oak stake drops into the palm of her hand from being tucked in her jacket sleeve. With a quick step forward, Buffy lunges with the oak stake in tow, jamming it into her attacker's heart. "You must have been sick the day they taught your buddies how to use those. Bummer."
"Wilkins expects the job to be handled by tonight." Finch informed, "You'll receive the rest of your payment after you have found success." The deputy mayor finishes his talk to Yamazaki while stepping over the rooftop and on to the fire escape. Yamazaki paid the lackey no mind and continued to watch the slayers battle the demons.
Buffy moves on to another small group of Balthazaar's minions across the street with her oak stake still in grasp. She was advancing to an outnumbered Faith who was fighting hard for the upper hand. A three-to-one ratio is nothing new for the wild-child slayer but these three were giving her trouble. She reaches for her own oak stake and goes for the kill of one to turn the odds back in her favor.
One vampire on her left, one on her right and one trying to remain behind her puts Faith at a disadvantage but with a quick step to her left, the vampire on her left misses a right-hook and is wide open for a stake in the chest. Faith seizes the moment and turns another vampire to dust while the one that was behind her is now in front of her, he was about to jump Faith from behind but missed.
The vamp on Faith's right was about to make toward her as well but the missed jump by his comrade delayed his footing. Now seeing an opening in Faith's defenses, he steps toward her and swiftly lifts his leg, snapping his body sideways in perfect timing with Faith's turn toward him. Faith is met with a sharp kick to the midsection that connects so hard, she is sent into the air, her oak stake also being thrown from her fingertips and landing in the alley behind the building in which they are fighting in front of.
Catching this turn of events, Yamazaki formulates a plan. "hmmm," he said to himself, "There's the opening." A small twitch in his neck jerks the binoculars over by two blocks. What he could not believe was he saw Finch taking to the alley holding his briefcase like it was his very life's dependency, and heading toward the slayers. "Oho!" he laughed to himself, "Ohohoho! This is rich! I couldn't have planned it better myself! YEEEAAAAHHH!" He pulls his binoculars from his face and chucks them off the rooftop. His face contorts to an insane smile and his spine is curved by his upper body leaning back. He begins to laugh like a madman while his eyes roll into the back of his head.
Snapping his body upright and still donning a crazed grin, Yamazaki backs up a few steps from the rooftop and takes a deep breathe. His tongue combs over his lips like a dingo awaiting its hunt, he rubs his hands together then begins a stride sprint toward the edge of the roof. His right foot stretches to the edge of the roof and proceeds to bound from the rooftop in the style of an Olympic Triple-Jump competitor. His hangtime is merely a second long but his feet find the landing he was aiming for, a nearby shipping truck.
Keeping in stride, he takes two more steps on the trailer before leaping again across the portion of the street the truck did not cover up. He grabs on to the streetlight, uses his momentum to thrust him against the building Finch is nearing. Yamazaki uses his upper body strength to hang on to a window pain and pull himself up to the rooftop of that building. To his right is the building where in front the Slayers are fighting the last two vampires. The Slayers were too busy with their enemies to notice Yamazaki's acrobatics and Yamazaki knew it. Making another dash toward that same building, Yamazaki performs a small leap over the gap between the two buildings to put his plan into motion.
Obtaining the lost oak stake that belonged to Faith was the first step in his plan so toward the alley behind the building he went. Though the alley was not as lit as the street, Yamazaki could see Faith's tool for vanishing the creatures of the night. Yamazaki could hear the footsteps approaching...the footsteps of Finch. Reaching into his front pants pocket pulling out a pair of long-fingered gloves, Yamazaki jumps over the edge of the building and lands in the alley. Finch suddenly came into view, between the two men stood about ten feet. Though the lighting was not the greatest on either men, Finch could tell by what he saw on Yamazaki's face that Yamazaki had a part for him in the plan...and Yamazaki could tell Finch was scared in multitudes.
Swallowing with a lump in his throat, Finch muttered, "Sh-shouldn't you be facing off with the girls right now?"
"Finch, Finch, Finch..." the assassin started, "you look so...frightened....you should be." The face of the hired assassin widens with a maniacal smile that would shake even Colin Powell to wet himself. Finch knew he was in trouble, he knew he was not going to see the slayers like he had planned..."(Sunnydale is doomed now for sure.)" is the last passing thought before Yamazaki spoke again.
"I know your plan, little man," Finch's stomach sunk like a led balloon, his confronter pulls on the long fingered gloves, "and they're going to make me another small fortune." Finch froze, being out of shape, the option to run away would be a foolish option because Yamazaki would hunt him down and make his death even more painful. Knowing he does not have a chance against Yamazaki physically, he decided to try the next best thing: talk.
"Look," his ploy began, "you, you, you don'tgottadothis. You-"
"Planning on ratting out your boss to his enemy is weak." Yamazaki's large frame moved commandingly through the shadows...then picked up Faith's oak stake. "So is begging for your life." Yamazaki began to walk toward the deputy mayor slowly, letting the great fear Finch was feeling grow to a sickening stress in his heart and stomach. With every step, Finch's back kept getting closer and closer to a tall dumpster. His back now flush against it, he knows he has nowhere to go and a fear like no other he has ever known overtakes his entire being...he knew his death was coming in a matter of moments.
Yamazaki's visage now became insane and tense, his teeth clenched tight, eyes rolling to the back of his head once more. His arms and torso also take a tense state as he caulks the oak stake behind him at waist height and jams it into Finch's stomach just below the belly-button. "YYEAAAAH!!!!!" Yamazaki's mentally unstable howl is loud enough to mute Finch's grunt of pain, it is also loud enough to be heard on the other side of the building.
The last vampire throws its upper body toward Buffy with a shoulder tackle but she doges out of the way. The vamp then proceeds to run over to Faith to mount a new attack. Before being able to carry it out, Faith reaches her hand out as a target for Buffy to toss her oak stake. Buffy flips the wood weapon successfully and Faith holds tight and sticks the attacker, now a dust heap.
A loud scream is heard again and catches the attention of both Buffy and Faith. "What the hell was that?" Faith asked.
"Don't know," Buffy replied, "could be more of 'em. We better check it out."
"More!?!" Faith complained, "This guy go on a recruiting spree or what?"
The two of them head over to the alley cautiously, Buffy in front of her partner by a stride. They near the edge of the building and get closer to the alley where the alley begins. Both girls can sense something coming...something evil, but they do not have a clue what they are about to come up against.
Buffy rounds the corner when her shoulder is met by a hand covered with fingerless gloves. Immediately assuming it is a vampire, she moves to push him away by grabbing his shirt on the ribs and near the collar. Her attempt is accomplished but met with some difficulty...the man appears to be over a foot taller than her.
Faith steps in with the oak stake looking to take him out quick. Buffy's push did not send the man to the ground so he stands back and makes a move that appears to dislocate his shoulder. "Syeah, syeah!" The dislocated arm backhands Faiths arm, knocking the oak stake out of her hand, then her throat to stun her. It was Yamazaki's Snake Tamer technique, a move done with the charge of ki that nails the opponent lightning fast. Faith did not see it coming, and now she is trying to regain her breathing after taking one in the voice-box.
Buffy moves in after Faith's punishment with a spin kick to the Yamazaki's chest. The kick is blocked but is followed up with a spinning jump-kick aimed for his face. This kick is ducked and this time counterattacked by Yamazaki with a punch to Buffy's beautiful face. She moved her neck just in time to let Yamazaki's jab go whiffing past her head, she then knocks away his arm and gives the big man an elbow to the sternum.
A gust of air blows from Yamazaki's mouth as the wind is knocked out of him, but a strong gut punch to Buffy in retaliation makes her lose some air herself. Buffy is bent over from the pain in her abdomen but just as Yamazaki was about to capitalize on Buffy's incapacitation, Faith jumps over Buffy and her fist meets Yamazaki's face square in the jaw. Yamazaki was in position to give Buffy a double-axehandle but instead is knocked back a couple of feet.
Buffy gets near Faith's side holding her oak stake, "Heh," Yamazaki snickered, "I can't be defeated by a wooden toy...broads."
Anger wells up in Faith upon hearing Yamazaki's sexist remark. Yamazaki's next move would aggravate her even further, he bends his back at a 45 degree angle and makes an obnoxious, foolish face that appears to be in mockery of the chosen two. Faith steps up and goes to kick him right in the chops. Executing a roundhouse beautifully and calling out to her target. "Son of a bi-" her call is cut off by Yamazaki's counterattack, the Drill. Faith's heel connects with Yamazaki's jaw but the pain does not register in Yamazaki's disturbed mind. A split second following, Yamazaki strikes back extending his arm into her midsection while a swirl of ki surrounds his arm like a drill. Faith's eyes had no time to widen by the display of her newfound foe, she is immediately sent high above and past Buffy, landing on the asphalt of the alley.
The effect of Yamazaki's Drill leaves Buffy spellbound, she has never seen something like this before... "(What was that!?! Magic? Now we have to deal with another powerful demon.)" Buffy's lament is not shown by her facial features, she still has her game face on and her oak stake in hand. "What do you want? And where did you come from?"
"Instead of asking me stupid questions," he retorted, "why don't you take a look at my handy work...or should I say, your handy work." He steps off to the side placing himself near the space between the two buildings they are fighting behind. The light passing through from that space illuminates the wall across the alley and spotlights a bloody mess. Slumped down against the wall in a sitting position is Allan Finch, his front torso split wide open from the top of his pubic bone to the top of his throat. Finch's insides are in a bloody pile a couple of feet from his body, a crimson trail can be seen from his battered carcass to the heap of guts. His face looks pail, lifeless.
Buffy shudders in disgust, "You, you did this!" Her face is brandished with rage then casts a gaze at Yamazaki, "Why? What kind of monster are you?" Yamazaki gives no reply to the Slayer's anger-filled inquiry, she looks back at the body and wishes there was a chance to call an ambulance.
"Oh my God...." Buffy turns her head to her right and sees Faith coming near her our of the corner of her eye, "....oh my God, Buffy," Faith continued, "That's my oak stake. My finger prints are on it!" A look of worry washed over Faith's cherubic face, both her and Buffy were in a state of not knowing what to do.
"Let's take this guy and turn him over to the cops." suggested Buffy.
"Shit! He's gone!" the fellow slayer cursed. Not having more time to think, sirens of the Sunnydale police cars were approaching at a fast rate. The mindset of not knowing what to was suddenly replaced in Faith with her adrenal glands commanding her to flee.
"Let's go!" Faith grabbed Buffy's arm and they exited the alley the way they came. Buffy took off into the streets while Faith kept running in the alleyway in hopes of avoiding the cops. "Dammit, B!" Faith let her disapproval with Buffy's separation out loud enough to wake the dead. Her emotions are running high right now, she's framed for Murder One, a new and powerful demon has surfaced....like they needed another one around and now her partner has separated from her when she needs her most. Fighting the undead is one thing but now she may have to fight the law.
Faith tries to cross the street to go into another alley but her route is headed off by a police car. She stops but afterward tries to react instead of think, her instincts lead her to leap on top and make for the alley. Once on top of the car, the driver gets out and pulls a revolver from his holster. "Freeze!" shouts the patrolman, he props his arms on top of the car aiming at the now in the dark alley Faith. The Policeman leaves his squad car and goes to chase Faith down her getaway path.
"Stop," the Policeman pleaded, "I'll shoot if you don't."
A brick wall joining two buildings causes Faith to do just as the policeman asked. "Listen, you are leaving a crime scene. Come to the station with me, you'll be asked a few questions. I can help you if you tell me the truth." Lights from the windows on each building shed light on the dark alley. The policeman can see Faith from light shining on her from both sides. Faith watches the policeman walk between each lit section in the alley. His face is given a shine as he walks past each window then it is covered up by the shadows in between.
The mind of Faith far from thinking rationally, all that is on her mind is how she could be locked up for committing a crime that was not committed by her. Words spoken to her by the policeman fade in and out of her thought process. Her heart is racing, stressed like no other time in her life. Seeing a dead civilian and knowing she will be blamed for it is driving her half-insane...and her physiology to act out in flight mode, letting nothing stop her. Her out of control nature during times of action had become her signature, her element that branded her different than Buffy.
"Ok," the policeman started again, "I'm going to put my gun away." He stopped about ten feet away from the slayer. "I know we can work this out, just come peaceably and I promise no harm will come to you."
"Don't talk to me like you're gonna be my white knight." retorted Faith "You could never understand what happened."
The policeman's eyebrows raise a little, wondering if perhaps he is dealing with a murderer. He takes a couple steps to cut the distance between him and Faith, puts his hands in the air, and once again tries to reason with the tough-chick slayer. "Alright, alright," swallowing, "I'm not going back to the station without you. You need to tell us what happened."
"Uh-uh, not happening."
"I'm sorry, sweetheart," he reaches into his belt to pull out his hand cuffs, "then we have to do this the hard way."
"Yeah, I go thru ya!" Faith lunges forward, throwing her shoulder into the policeman's upper mid-section to knock him down to the ground. His arms go from trying to reach for the cuffs to outward by the impact given to him by Faith. He skips a few feet down the alley while Faith takes off again, now on the street. To her left she sees two more squad cars with their cherries flickering, the squad car of the fallen cop is parked in the street in just the right position that the other two cars cannot get around it. Faith rounds the corner hearing a PA system from one car boom but she cannot tell what he or she is saying, her mind is strictly focused on her feet moving fast enough to get away.
Hiding out in a dark shadow near a building, Buffy managed to shake some police cars but she knows all cops out on patrol tonight know her face and know to keep an eye out for her. "What am I going to tell Giles?" she wonders to herself "We didn't get to the warehouse to find Balthazaar, we ran into an even more powerful demon and..." her head is buried in her hands due to the sorrow of what had occurred earlier "...we're in trouble!"
Her head, heart and body give out to the emotional flow from seeing a dead man....one person she could not save. The blood...everywhere...his shirt, coat, pants, his face and hands. Blood was all over the dead corpse. And his insides...seeing the man's internal organs placed next to him as though they were a part of a sick puzzle. The sight, the blood made Buffy's stomach curdle and finally she could take no more. She turned her head to vomit in a shadow covered corner. The smell, the glistening of each organ forced more bile to come up from the pits of Buffy's stomach. The slayer had seen many gruesome sights in her short life however, the works of Yamazaki had scarred her brain like no other. The limp, lifeless body of Allan Finch also boasted another element in Buffy's young mind: failure. "That face...it looked so helpless." the eyes of the slayer began to fill with tears, "Like he was looked for help." Her tears began to travel down her soft cheeks when she was found the grasp of two strong arms.
Feeling it may be Yamazaki, Buffy's tears dry fast and her body tenses once again. Her hands grab a forearm crossing her shoulders and she steps backwards, heaving the body behind her over her head and onto a lit part of the alley she hid in. The body travels over the pavement and hits the ground with a thud. The recipient rolls on the ground twice. Buffy notices a long, leather trenchcoat on a man with short hair and the face of an....
"Angel?" Buffy's blood starts to simmer down, thinking it may be Yamazaki again got her heart going.
Angel gets up from being hurled on the ground and begins to brush off his coat. He is now at a full stand in front of Buffy. He looks over at his lover, immediately knowing something is wrong.
"We're in trouble," her heart sank again, thinking of the man in the alley, the psycho that killed him and where Faith is. "We're in big trouble." Now mentally exhausted, Sunnydale's blonde beauty begins to weep again. Her emotions cannot keep up the strength to hold her sorrow back. She knows Faith is going to do something drastic, Faith is that type of person. Her left arm holds her stomach while her right hand covers her mouth and nose. She begins to feel her mind go numb, every thought is filtered into her psyche...images twisting, turning, washing over her mind track like flood. Thoughts continue to pop up in her mind, she calls on none. Her state of mind is beside herself, a collage if you will, of the events having transpired just minutes ago. Outwardly she also struggles with the torment. Though excited to see Angel, she can not hide her inner conflict from her lover.
"Hey," he put his hand on her shoulders, "you're really freaked out." A glaze of security coats Buffy's stomach followed by all the stress occupying her body collapsing through her feet. Angel hears the sirens of police cars and has a feeling Buffy was running from them since she was hiding in the shadows. His heart's desire appeared to be in no mood to talk so he hugged her and kept his arm around her, "Let's head to the Library and talk to Giles..." Buffy began to perk up, Angel's suggestion had been the best idea she has heard for what seems to be an eternity. The two stick to the darker side of the neighborhood in order to not attract the attention of the police. "...he'll know what to do." Angel looks at Buffy and then the road in front of them, making sure they stay away from the light.
Sunnydale: a few blocks from the basketball courts
Nighttime can be a wonderful time, when all is peaceful and serene. The moon still casts it's neon glow, giving light where no streetlight can be found. The neighborhood appears to be asleep with the night getting late. Anyone walking down the street at this hour would be able to close his or her eyes and continue to walk, basking in the night's peacefulness. Granted, the police are still zooming around in their squad cars but they are too far away to be heard around this part of town. All in all, the scenery is relaxing....but then again...not if you no longer have your entire face intact.
"Lord Balthazzar is going to kill me!" The vampire that managed to survive Terry Bogard's Power Geyser walks in pain. Every step registers in his undead neurons bringing the sensation to the brain.
His discomfort is put on hold for a second and a new feeling arises within him. Somehow his feelings receive a splash of familiarity...the feeling of those just like him nearby. He knows the difference between his kind and the kind who serve the mayor and is about to be relieved.
A small group of Balthazzar's soldiers are approaching, each of them determined, focused, not saying a word and walking at a quick pace. So centered are they that they are all startled when their beat up comrade approaches them.
"Hey!" the battered minion meets the group from the left side, catching all of their attention. "I'm glad to...to....to..."
"By stars," one of them spoke, "What happened to you?"
"We...have to...go...back...to the....warehouse.." too wounded to speak fluently, "...there is an..another..enemy...a..a...among...us."
"We were headed to the Library," another informed, "but you need to see our master now." All members of the group do an about-face while one braces the injured vamp. Together they make their way to Balthazzar...God only knows what awaits.
Stanley's
"Ahhh, hit the spot." said Terry after dipping his last French Fry into some ketchup and eating it. He picked up his glass of coke and washed down his meal in one gulp. Nothing satisfied Terry's hunger more than a good round of burgers and fries. Terry's tastes are simple: the less healthy the better.
Jane brings his bill back to his booth and asks how everything was. After assessing his damage to his billfold, Terry walks up to the counter passing by his heckler. He pays no mind to the older man but can sense a cringe coming off him. Terry hands what he owes to the waitress that greeted him and she tells him, "Don't worry about what Harold said," she smiled, "you're more rugged than he could ever be." Terry returned her sentiments with a simple "Thanks." He then grabbed his duffel bag and stepped toward his motorcycle.
The Duffel bag is placed on it's seat in the sidecar. Terry reaches into his pocket and takes out the motorcycle key when he feels the urge to go to the bathroom. "(One coke too many.)" He proceeded back into the diner to use the rest room. The waitress that greeted him when he first entered gave him a smile when he walked back in. Then he went into the men's room to do his business.
Not too far from Stanley's
Clip-clop Clip-clop is the sound made rapidly by Faith's fleeing feet. She feels like she has never run so hard in her whole life. Though in terrific shape, Faith is winded somewhat, fighting vampires and then having to run like an Olympic Sprinter is enough to take it out of anybody.
Not hearing any sirens nearby, Faith rests up against a corner of a building to catch her breathe. Her fingers go through her hair to let the cool night air blow over her face. She takes the sleeve of her shirt and rubs off any sweat or saliva near her mouth.
"Damn," her first after-breathe reaction, "I need some wheels." Going back to her want, take, have mind-set she successfully ingrained into Buffy's head the other night, searching for a quick means of transportation.
She notices she is not far from main street which means there should be plenty of cars to choose from...it is Friday night, she's bound to find something. Her pace becomes a light jog and she ventures off to the life of the town.
Down main street, various cars pass her by making her wish she was in one of them. Behind her she can hear another car, in front of her she can see lights reflecting off buildings across the street. Her immediate reaction: run!
Faith dashes to her left, running parallel to main street. She can hear the squad car boost in acceleration so she knows she has to run even faster and find a car with the windows rolled down or even someone just setting into one. Now on the same block housing Stanley's, Faith knows the oncoming traffic and parking lot will buy her some time to find a means of transportation.
Faith's on-foot thinking pays off, the squad car got slowed down because of the traffic and she made it into the parking lot, out of the driver's field of vision.
The sprint she was running at is reduced to a slow walk while Faith glances over the perimeter to check if there are patrons getting in or out of their cars. "Ugh!" her frustration reaches a fever-pitch when she suddenly notices a red motorcycle. She licks her lips and gives approval, "Perfect!"
In Stanley's, Terry comes out of the rest room and sees an attractive girl run fast across the parking lot. He then sees her jump on his bike. "Hey!" He yells while still in the restaurant. "HEY!" He yells again, this time opening up the entrance to the restaurant. He opens the next door to the outside and goes after her. Unfortunately for him, she has already kick started the engine. "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!?! GET OFF OF THERE!!" Terry may as well been yelling at the sidewalk. Faith sped off on his bike, with his duffel bag riding in the sidecar. "Aw shit!" he holds his head with his right hand, "Now what am I gonna do?" Terry was clearly pissed off and had every right to be. But before he could voice his opinion on his bike, three police cars appeared, two marked and one unmarked.
Out of the unmarked car a bald man dressed in a brown suit stepped. He appeared to be a detective. Another man came out of the driver's side and motioned to the other two cars to keep on the chase.
Terry watched the two get out of the car and walk toward him. Both men give off a devoted vibe, dedicated to their work, hard on a case. The other man was taller and had brown hair, he donned a blue suit without a neck tie, he also appeared to be well-muscled.
"Excuse me," The bald one attempted to get Terry's attention, "what's your name?"
"Terry" He replied.
"May I see some ID, please."
Terry reached into a back pocket of his jeans and pulled out his wallet. He opened it and flipped out his California driver's license and handed to the man.
"Thank you, Mr. Bogard," he said, looking over Terry's license, "I'm Detective Paul and this is Detective Jones, was that your cycle?"
Terry was not giving his full focus to his questioner, he was wondering why so many policemen would be chasing a girl. The detective's question finally registers in Terry's brain and he snaps back into the here-and-now, "Yeah...yeah, that was mine." He looks at Paul while he writes something down in a little notebook. Paul turns to his partner and talks in a whisper and then looks back at Terry. "Thank you, you can go now. If you leave a number we can reach you at, we'll let you know what happens to your motorcycle."
Terry's mind is between the seen and the girl that rode off with his bike, trying to piece together what is going on. "(This many cops, one girl...c'mon. Something ain't right.)" He turned around to walk away from the cop when he heard something.
"I mean his entire body cavity was wide open." The detective's partner began, "Wide open! I've never seen guts like that since my anatomy class back in college."
This information made Terry freeze, he knows of that style of killing and he knows only one person alive who could do that. The girl could not duplicate that type of killing, that type of killing has a signature all its own.
He replays the girl lifting his bike, how she was eager, fast, running from something...not just the cops. "There's more going on than the cops can see. Yamazaki's in town, and somehow, he's managed to get that girl in trouble." He turns around to the two detectives, "Hey, keep your eyes open on this one," those words caught the attention of both men, "you're dealing with something you've never gone up against ever." Both men look at him like he is an idiot and continue comparing notes.
The bald one felt that one in his ego, he had been on the force for 10 years and was not going to let a young punk tell him how to do his job. "And I suppose you've done many cases in your lifetime, eh?"
No response came. The bald man lifted his head to follow up his attempt to raz Terry but Terry was gone. He looked over at his partner and he shrugged his shoulders. The two got back in their car and drove away.
Meanwhile, Terry began to trace the trail left by Faith. Anywhere between ten to fifteen minutes went by, "(She could be long gone by now)." He put his right hand to grab the bill of his hat but it was not on his head. He threw his hand out at his side, and his face looked down on the ground. Something caught his attention underneath a streetlight, a dark, shimmering spot on the asphalt. He went over to the light to get a closer look, knowing it could be a lead.
The spot appeared to glisten a little from the light. Terry knelt down on the ground and touched the spot with his pointer finger. He then rubbed the finger with his thumb and sniffed the matter.
"Oil!" perked Terry, "It's still fairly fresh, I thought I fixed the oil leak last week. Duct tape just isn't what it used to be." Terry ran over to the next light to see if there was another spot of oil underneath it and there was.
"This is going to be hard to do at night, but if the girl that took my bike has Yamazaki on her back....then she's going to need my help." Terry kept his search for the oil spots and found a pattern developing. Terry let his instincts take over from there, he knows he has to find his mystery thief quickly or it may be too late.