He lifted the sword, ready to face the armies of hell rolling toward
his small group of insurgents...Gunn, who wouldn't make it much further;
Illyria, still shaking with grief and not understanding; and Spike, the
last person he ever thought would be fighting by his side against the
forces of evil. He was calm, ready, accepting. He had said many times
before: you don't fight because you know you can win. You fight because
there are things worth fighting for. Still, this was the first time he had
truly believed it.
Moments before the first strike, shadows fell from the roofs overhead. Angel looked up, blinking to keep the rain out of his eyes. Lining the rooftops of all the buildings in the alley were girls, hundreds of girls. Slayers! He honestly hadn't expected this. They began rappelling down the buildings, armed and ready to battle. Buffy landed in front of him, and threw him a look over her shoulder. "Hey, you." She said. "Haven't had a good apocalypse in a while."
Her head swung around to face Spike, but there was no time for a tearful reunion. The battle began – the smell of blood and sweat, the sound of swords clanging, ripping flesh, the whoosh of an arrow flying past him. His mind raced as he fought – Buffy. But, she didn't trust him. And the Immortal. And- Soon, he wasn't able to form a thought as the demons pushed forward.
Initially, the Slayers had the advantage. It was a small area, and though many of the creatures were large, they didn't have a lot of room to maneuver. Soon, though, they won the upper hand, because there were simply more of them. Maybe an hour passed of solid fighting, both sides holding their own, before a change seemed to occur. Some of the demons seemed to lose strength. Others seemed to surge with newfound energy, taking out the nearest girl and rushing forward, before they too seemed drained. As the creatures lagged, the remaining Slayers, the vampires, and the small creature with blue hair finished them off.
It took some moments before any of those who were still alive recovered enough to take in what had happened. The alley was strewn with corpses – those of fantastical demons, their evil steeds, even a dragon, and girls. So many girls. Angel looked around, spotting Gunn. No, he hadn't made it, but he had gone out with a good fight, bringing down five of the demons before simply running out of blood to keep him going. Spike was still standing, but barely, and sporting a nasty looking gash from one hip to his ribs. There was Buffy, who could always be counted on to be one of the last ones standing, it seemed. And Faith. Another girl, with curly brown hair and what appeared to be a broken arm. A blonde girl...Oh, God, was that Dawn lying broken on the side of the alley. Why was she fighting with the Slayers?
His thoughts were interrupted by Spike's hand on his arm. "We gotta go, mate. Sun's coming up."
Buffy spoke up. "The others are at your hotel. Let's get inside." She glanced around, finally seeing Dawn. All color drained from her face, and a low moan escaped her. She moved to her sister's side, tried to pick her up, but even the slim body was too much weight. Angel moved to help, but Buffy whipped her head toward him and said viciously, "No. Don't."
Faith bent down and wordlessly helped Buffy lift her sister. "Lead the way." She said softly.
Angel turned and went to the only place he could.
Home.
Moments before the first strike, shadows fell from the roofs overhead. Angel looked up, blinking to keep the rain out of his eyes. Lining the rooftops of all the buildings in the alley were girls, hundreds of girls. Slayers! He honestly hadn't expected this. They began rappelling down the buildings, armed and ready to battle. Buffy landed in front of him, and threw him a look over her shoulder. "Hey, you." She said. "Haven't had a good apocalypse in a while."
Her head swung around to face Spike, but there was no time for a tearful reunion. The battle began – the smell of blood and sweat, the sound of swords clanging, ripping flesh, the whoosh of an arrow flying past him. His mind raced as he fought – Buffy. But, she didn't trust him. And the Immortal. And- Soon, he wasn't able to form a thought as the demons pushed forward.
Initially, the Slayers had the advantage. It was a small area, and though many of the creatures were large, they didn't have a lot of room to maneuver. Soon, though, they won the upper hand, because there were simply more of them. Maybe an hour passed of solid fighting, both sides holding their own, before a change seemed to occur. Some of the demons seemed to lose strength. Others seemed to surge with newfound energy, taking out the nearest girl and rushing forward, before they too seemed drained. As the creatures lagged, the remaining Slayers, the vampires, and the small creature with blue hair finished them off.
It took some moments before any of those who were still alive recovered enough to take in what had happened. The alley was strewn with corpses – those of fantastical demons, their evil steeds, even a dragon, and girls. So many girls. Angel looked around, spotting Gunn. No, he hadn't made it, but he had gone out with a good fight, bringing down five of the demons before simply running out of blood to keep him going. Spike was still standing, but barely, and sporting a nasty looking gash from one hip to his ribs. There was Buffy, who could always be counted on to be one of the last ones standing, it seemed. And Faith. Another girl, with curly brown hair and what appeared to be a broken arm. A blonde girl...Oh, God, was that Dawn lying broken on the side of the alley. Why was she fighting with the Slayers?
His thoughts were interrupted by Spike's hand on his arm. "We gotta go, mate. Sun's coming up."
Buffy spoke up. "The others are at your hotel. Let's get inside." She glanced around, finally seeing Dawn. All color drained from her face, and a low moan escaped her. She moved to her sister's side, tried to pick her up, but even the slim body was too much weight. Angel moved to help, but Buffy whipped her head toward him and said viciously, "No. Don't."
Faith bent down and wordlessly helped Buffy lift her sister. "Lead the way." She said softly.
Angel turned and went to the only place he could.
Home.
