Origins
PREVIOUSLY ON BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER.
"Dawn, listen to me. Listen." Buffy stood before her sister and her tear-filled eyes. Dawn knew what was coming. She knew the moment Buffy broke eye contact. Time felt slowed and focused. Dawn barely noticed the bolts of energy flying around or the dragon that was circling up a head.
"I love you. I will always love you. But this is the work that I have to do."
Dawn couldn't believe it.
She shook her head in disbelief, tears streaming down her face.
"Tell Giles…" Buffy took a deep breath. "Tell Giles I figured it out. And I'm okay. And give my love to my friends. You have to take care of them now."
It felt like Buffy was placing the weight of the world on her shoulders. How could Dawn take care of them? Was she strong enough?
"You have to take care of each other. You have to be strong. Dawn. The hardest thing in this world, is to live in it." It wasn't going to be getting any better with Buffy gone.
"Be brave. Live. For me."
Buffy leaned in and kissed her sister, gave her one last look, and turned.
Buffy ran. She reached the end of the platform and dove head first into the crackling energy.
Buffy had always wanted her death to mean something.
And it did.
THEN.
Following Buffy's death and burial, Willow traveled to Los Angeles.
Angel and his crew walked through the doors of the Hyperion Hotel to find her sitting there alone.
Angel knew.
"Buffy."
"Have you ever heard of the Urn of Osiris?"
Tara turned her head to Willow, who was sitting on the couch next to her in the Summers home.
"No, why?"
Willow handed the book to Tara, stood and began pacing the room.
"Willow."
"Tara, this could work!"
"Willow, honey. Sit."
Willow took her place back next to Tara on the couch.
"We can't mess with this kind of stuff." she said. "Life and death are there for a reason. We shouldn't go messing with them." "But what if she's in pain?" Willow asked. "That energy was a portal for Glory to go home to some Hell dimension. What if she was transported there?" "Willow, we buried-"
"Her body, yes." Willow finished. "But her soul, Tara. That could be trapped. Tortured for all eternity. We can't just leave her."
Willow started to cry.
Tara cradled her lover in her arms as she did. Tara silently agreed that this was an avenue they needed to pursue.
Weeks later, their research brought them to an artifact known as the "Axis of Pythia".
"That's not really going to help, is it?" Willow was so sure they knew where Buffy was that there was no reason for them to not search for the Urn of Osiris. "We know what we're doing and we need to hurry."
They had spend so much time searching for the urn that Anya took it up on herself to call around some suppliers via Magic Box connections.
They had all heard of the Urn of Osiris, six knew of one's existence, and one knew that it had been destroyed.
"Okay, so the reason I brought you all here is because I have something to say." Anya looked at Xander, who nodded. "It's about the urn."
Willow perked up in her chair.
"It's gone."
"What do you mean it's gone?" Willow stood quickly and her voice cracked.
"Um…" Anya didn't want to upset anyone with this information, let alone a powerful witch who went head to head with a god. "Not so much gone as in not here, but gone as in… Destroyed."
"What?" Willow began to cry. This was their only chance to help Buffy; to save her.
"The reason there was only one left was because in order to completely seal the spell into completion is to destroy the vessel." Anya was now looking at the floor. "They made so many back in ancient times because of this, but once time progressed and people began shunning the practice, they stopped making them. The practice was spread through word of mouth and was lost with the ancient people. I'm sorry, Willow."
Willow was sobbing into Tara's shoulder, who was in tears as well.
Xander stood and went to the kitchen and opened a cardboard box.
"Which is why we got this instead." said Xander.
"Is that…?" Willow asked.
"The Axis of Pythia." Tara responded.
"I figured that instead of all of us worrying she was in some Hell dimension that one of us could… You know."
That night, under mutual agreement, that Willow would be the one to go. She meditated and activated the artifact and found herself on a bright plane. There were no bodies or any physical forms here.
She heard voices.
Happy ones.
She heard Buffy.
"Step away from the glass."
Wesley jumped backwards, dropping the phone and knocking over the chair he sat on.
The glass window that separated him and the rogue slayer was now shattered and she was coming out of a roll to face two prison guards.
Guards were easy. Escape was not.
Jumping out of a window with Wesley wasn't Faith's idea of a safe getaway, but it was the fastest they had.
"You okay?" she asked.
"Five by five."
"Don't mention it." Willow said. "I got a Slayer out of the deal, so we're even steven."
She stepped forward to give Angel a "Welcome Back" hug. Her intent was silent, but her heart said that's what it was. Angel accepted the hug as a "Thank You".
"The next time you guys resurrect Angelus, call me first. Okay?"
The gang agreed.
"Don't be strangers." said Wesley.
"We won't." Willow responded.
With Buffy gone, Willow and the rest of the Scoobies rarely found it necessary to contact Angel for anything now that things were remotely peaceful in Sunnydale.
A few months after Buffy's death, a demon biker gang known as Hellions invaded Sunnydale. That was the last time they called in Angel and his crew to help out. And that was two years ago.
Willow and Faith turned to leave, but were met with doors opening and several members of the Watcher's Council, including the council head Quentin Travers.
"Hello, Faith."
Faith had never met this man before in her life. How did he know her?
"We have an offer for you."
The Watcher's Council heads flew to Los Angeles after being alerted to the rogue slayer's escape from prison. And upon seeing that she is now fighting along side Willow, a known comrade to the Council, they explained that she could join the fight against evil once more after a rehabilitation period of six months.
"I spent my fair share of time being rehabilitated. I'm good."
"Ms. Lehane, I do not think you understand the severity of your choices." Mr. Travers said. "Now let me clarify. You come with us for six months, or you come with us until your death."
"Either way, I'm dead. I'm a Slayer."
"Were." Quentin corrected. "Were as Slayer. You have no affiliation to that status anymore as far as this Council is concerned. You are a known murderer and felon. You'll be wanted all of the country. We can change that." Now he was speaking her language.
"What do you have in mind?" she asked.
"Full immunity." he replied. "Within reason. Just because you are a Slayer won't mean that you have a license for a free for all. You will come with us for a six month rehabilitation, join us in the fight against evil, and in exchange we give you your freedom. You'll be free from any crimes you have committed in the past. Clean record." Faith looked to Willow, then to the rest of room.
"Do we have a deal?"
"Let's get a few things straight here." Faith stepped towards the Council and met eyes with Mr. Travers. "I'm not your puppet. I'll slay. I will. But you're not going to jerk me around. I'll kill whatever you need killing. I'll be your Slayer. Deal."
"Good." Quentin looked behind Faith. "Wesley."
Wesley stepped forward.
"We have some business to tend to with you as well." Faith and Wesley exchanged looks. "You helped her escape her prison."
Wesley began to stutter over his words.
"We commend you for that." Mr. Travers had no patience for stuttering. "You took the course of action any good watcher would do. You did what needed to be done to save the world. On behalf of the Council, we would like to reinstate you as official Watcher to Faith."
"Same rules apply for me as they do her?" he was quick with negotiations.
Quentin nodded.
"Then we have a deal."
Although he was on call to Angel and his group in Los Angeles, losing a full time member of the team wasn't the best timing, what with the information they were about to receive shortly after he and Faith left with Willow regarding Cordelia.
Sunnydale regained their Slayer.
But only for a time.
Faith and Wesley, while stationed in Sunnydale, traveled the globe chasing one form of Big Bad to the next.
Four years were spent returned to slaying. Three years of prison. Weeks of fighting for the Mayor. And prior to that she was a Slayer. One of two.
And by 2007, both were gone.
Into every generation there is a Chosen one. She alone will stand against the Vampires, Demons and the Forces of Darkness.
She is the Slayer.