Buffy, Giles, Xander, Willow, Oz, and Anya are all property of the producers of Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Duncan MacLeod, Joe Dawson, Amanda, and Methos are property of the producers of Highlander
Huang Di/Wu Caine and Chang are mine
PROLOUGE
The Slayer cruised the streets and dark graveyards of her town, trolling for vampires. To them, she was their greatest enemy, the Chosen One, Buffy Summers. Born with the strength and instincts necessary to fight the legions of evil. But she was not prepared for what she would meet this night.
Her Slayer sense warned her of an approaching evil being. Aha! She thought, Some newbie vamp is trying to be clever, sneaking up behind me. Well he's in for a surprise. She turned around, drawing a stake, prepared to smite whatever vampire was lurking in the shadows - and gasped in pain as she was met with three feet of steel in the gut. Since when do vamps use swords! Was her first thought. She looked into the face of her assailant, it was not the face of a demon, rather a human. "Why?" she croaked.
"Your Quickening must be prepared, Slayer. For Chang." Even as she was dying from the wound in her stomach, she managed to stab the man in the arm with her stake. "ARRGH!" he howled in pain. Pulling out a taser, he prepared to shock her directly into unconsciousness. Suddenly, something sliced through the air, and the man was suddenly sans left arm. Turning to meet this new threat, Buffy's assailant's eyes widened in shock. "Wu Caine, you must not interfere," he hissed through his teeth. Buffy caught a glimpse of this man, Wu, before the other man pulled his sword out of her and she fell to the ground, gasping in pain. From the ground, she saw the two men face off at each other.
"She is not one of us, yet. Chang will not have the Slayer's Quickening," her rescuer said. "Not another. You go back to him now, and tell him that she is under my protection." Quickening? Wondered Buffy.
"You don't understand do you, Wu? Chang is already more powerful than you."
"I doubt that very much. It would take at least two more Slayer's Quickenings before he can defeat me. But if he thinks he can get her from me, tell him to come here. We'll finish it. Run along now, your life is in mortal peril." The man turned as if he was going to leave, but then turned again and charged at Wu. Wu moved his blade so fast through the air that it hummed, and the man found himself holding half a sword. "I do not play with you. Go...NOW!" The man turned and fled. Turning to Buffy, Wu said, "We will meet again soon Slayer, at which time you will learn a great deal." She slipped into unconsciousness.
Upon awaking, Buffy found herself in her bedroom. It was early afternoon, and a Saturday. Sitting up straight, she felt no trace of the pain she would have assumed feeling after being run through with a sword. Looking down, she also discovered no trace of a wound. At this point, her mind was reeling. After dismissing it to her accelerated Slayer healing powers, she headed to Giles's place to ask him about the man she had seen.
"Giles, what do know about demons, or otherwise, who fight each other with swords?"
Giles said, "Well I have read legends of a race of humans who can live forever, and only die if their head is cut off. They go around fighting each other with swords, to win the Prize."
"What's the Prize?"
"The legends don't say. Why do you ask?"
"No reason.
Later, on patrol, Buffy found herself face to face with the man, Wu Caine. Drawing her stake, she demanded answers.
"Buffy, I am what is known as an Immortal. We live forever, healing from all injuries and diseases, unless our heads are removed from our bodies. We engage in combat with other Immortals, the winner taking his opponent's Quickening, his life force, the sum total of all the Immortal's knowledge and power. At the end, there will be one Immortal left, and that Immortal will have all the knowledge and experience of all the Immortals who ever lived, enough power to rule humanity forever."
Buffy just stared incredulously, "So are you born this way?"
"No. For one to become an Immortal, he or she must first be killed. Like you were," he finished grinning.
Buffy was struck speechless. "But...I...You mean I'm immortal now?!"
"Yes. That is why I have sought you out. To protect you and train you, so that you will live an extraordinarily long time, and do great good. You are only the seventh Immortal Slayer in history. My mortal enemy, Chang, killed the other six and took their Quickenings."
"So I can't die. This is SO cool!" Buffy was practically hopping with joy. Stopping she asked, "How old are you anyway?"
"I thought you'd never ask. A long time ago, I was known as Huang Di, the Yellow Emperor. I was one of the three founders of civilization in China. I am merely a legend now. That was some seven thousand years ago, and was my first major appearance. I am actually close to ten thousand years old. I am - despite what they say about my student, Methos - the oldest of us all."
Duncan MacLeod, Joe Dawson, Amanda, and Methos are property of the producers of Highlander
Huang Di/Wu Caine and Chang are mine
PROLOUGE
The Slayer cruised the streets and dark graveyards of her town, trolling for vampires. To them, she was their greatest enemy, the Chosen One, Buffy Summers. Born with the strength and instincts necessary to fight the legions of evil. But she was not prepared for what she would meet this night.
Her Slayer sense warned her of an approaching evil being. Aha! She thought, Some newbie vamp is trying to be clever, sneaking up behind me. Well he's in for a surprise. She turned around, drawing a stake, prepared to smite whatever vampire was lurking in the shadows - and gasped in pain as she was met with three feet of steel in the gut. Since when do vamps use swords! Was her first thought. She looked into the face of her assailant, it was not the face of a demon, rather a human. "Why?" she croaked.
"Your Quickening must be prepared, Slayer. For Chang." Even as she was dying from the wound in her stomach, she managed to stab the man in the arm with her stake. "ARRGH!" he howled in pain. Pulling out a taser, he prepared to shock her directly into unconsciousness. Suddenly, something sliced through the air, and the man was suddenly sans left arm. Turning to meet this new threat, Buffy's assailant's eyes widened in shock. "Wu Caine, you must not interfere," he hissed through his teeth. Buffy caught a glimpse of this man, Wu, before the other man pulled his sword out of her and she fell to the ground, gasping in pain. From the ground, she saw the two men face off at each other.
"She is not one of us, yet. Chang will not have the Slayer's Quickening," her rescuer said. "Not another. You go back to him now, and tell him that she is under my protection." Quickening? Wondered Buffy.
"You don't understand do you, Wu? Chang is already more powerful than you."
"I doubt that very much. It would take at least two more Slayer's Quickenings before he can defeat me. But if he thinks he can get her from me, tell him to come here. We'll finish it. Run along now, your life is in mortal peril." The man turned as if he was going to leave, but then turned again and charged at Wu. Wu moved his blade so fast through the air that it hummed, and the man found himself holding half a sword. "I do not play with you. Go...NOW!" The man turned and fled. Turning to Buffy, Wu said, "We will meet again soon Slayer, at which time you will learn a great deal." She slipped into unconsciousness.
Upon awaking, Buffy found herself in her bedroom. It was early afternoon, and a Saturday. Sitting up straight, she felt no trace of the pain she would have assumed feeling after being run through with a sword. Looking down, she also discovered no trace of a wound. At this point, her mind was reeling. After dismissing it to her accelerated Slayer healing powers, she headed to Giles's place to ask him about the man she had seen.
"Giles, what do know about demons, or otherwise, who fight each other with swords?"
Giles said, "Well I have read legends of a race of humans who can live forever, and only die if their head is cut off. They go around fighting each other with swords, to win the Prize."
"What's the Prize?"
"The legends don't say. Why do you ask?"
"No reason.
Later, on patrol, Buffy found herself face to face with the man, Wu Caine. Drawing her stake, she demanded answers.
"Buffy, I am what is known as an Immortal. We live forever, healing from all injuries and diseases, unless our heads are removed from our bodies. We engage in combat with other Immortals, the winner taking his opponent's Quickening, his life force, the sum total of all the Immortal's knowledge and power. At the end, there will be one Immortal left, and that Immortal will have all the knowledge and experience of all the Immortals who ever lived, enough power to rule humanity forever."
Buffy just stared incredulously, "So are you born this way?"
"No. For one to become an Immortal, he or she must first be killed. Like you were," he finished grinning.
Buffy was struck speechless. "But...I...You mean I'm immortal now?!"
"Yes. That is why I have sought you out. To protect you and train you, so that you will live an extraordinarily long time, and do great good. You are only the seventh Immortal Slayer in history. My mortal enemy, Chang, killed the other six and took their Quickenings."
"So I can't die. This is SO cool!" Buffy was practically hopping with joy. Stopping she asked, "How old are you anyway?"
"I thought you'd never ask. A long time ago, I was known as Huang Di, the Yellow Emperor. I was one of the three founders of civilization in China. I am merely a legend now. That was some seven thousand years ago, and was my first major appearance. I am actually close to ten thousand years old. I am - despite what they say about my student, Methos - the oldest of us all."