This is a Buffy Universe story featuring characters from all of Joss Whedon's Slayer projects. Spike and Illyria from Angel, Faith and Andrew from Buffy and Melaka Fray from the comic book. They are put into their own universe; they are gathered together 2000 years ago in Rome, where they meet a new slayer.
The format of the prose is structured to be easily converted into a television script. It's a technique I formulated for making comic book scripts more reader friendly in prose form. I called it panel prose.
The following story is meant to be done in a two hour movie format, as a pilot for a show.
( Actually, although I'm sure you could make a show of it, I think that just grabbing powerful Buffy characters and slapping them together would not be a really great premise for a series as it would carry too much baggage to be of interest to newer viewers, but I figured that Buffy fans might be attracted by this combination.)
I have no plans to write a sequel, as there are far too many other things I am working on right now.
"Vesuvius"
Part 1 Roaming down the Road to Rome.
The blond girl stepped into the centre of the Roman arena. The crowd filling the stands chanted, booming out from all about; "Slayer, slayer, slayer."
The young blond girl, of about 16 years, stood resolute looking out at the cheering crowd.
It was nighttime. The arena was lit with old oil lanterns, torches, and every now and then a large column of bright white fire spilled out of large fire cauldrons.
Soon the air grew still and they prepared to open the gates to unleash the beasts.
They opened and the vampires came out screaming at the girl, but in the confusion one of the starving lions had been released from the pens as well as the vampires.
Andrew was talking aloud.
- She was amazing. She tore into those vamps with a practiced ease of a great master.
- Right away one of the vamps went for the slayer.
The vampire bore down on the girl.
- But this girl was young, very young, and I swear to God, nobody, I mean nobody was meant to be that good at such a young age.
She stepped out of the vampire's path, letting him careen into one of the other vampires.
- It didn't make any sense.
She unleashed a furious kick sending another vampire into the other vampires down on the ground.
- Then it occurred to me what she must be, don't worry I've gotten a lot better lately about being able to discern reality from fantasy, well at least lately. It was Giles… um Mr. Giles idea, he said since I was such a big fan of stories how about looking at a couple of stories that weren't make believe. He gave me; The Great Big Book of History for Children. I figured it would suck because, duh, history, but it was amazing. It changed the way I looked at history. It wasn't just dates and treaties and wars and politics. It was a story about real people. A really, really big story that seemed to never end.
One of the vampires was nipped on the leg by the lioness. The blond slayer looked at the lioness alarmed, and quickly sent the vampire sprawling across the ground.
The cat snarled at the slayer.
The blond slayer reached out her hand and grabbed the cat around the throat and lightly applied pressure. "You must not bite these things my pet. They will leave a bad taste in your mouth."
The blond slayer formed her arms into knarled claws and looked at the cat seriously. "But that doesn't mean you can't help me shred them to bits."
They looked out at the vampires surrounding them. With a glance sideways at the cat beside her, she tore into them.
-Every now and then in history you have someone who so excels beyond others, they stand apart in their greatness..
The slayer dusted a vampire, yet one stood behind her waiting to attack.
-The Mozart's, the di Vinci's, the Einstein's…
The vampire reached out its arms to grab her when the cat leapt upon him and flung him too the ground.
- And it was so with her…
- She was a virtuoso, a genius, she was near perfect.
- We were all impressed.
Spike looked out through the bars locking him off from the main arena where he watched the blond slayer fight.
"Wow, did you see that mate? Who is she? She's…"
"Magnificent." The blue tinted Illyria looked out at the fight, a sneer on her lips.
Melaka Fray looked on. "She's very fast, and very, very strong."
"Yeah, maybe, but it's not just that, man." Faith wiped at the gooey black blood that covered most of her face. "Look, she just took out three vamps with one move."
"Her technique is not like anyone's I've ever seen, she's, I mean she looks like she's as good as Buffy."
"Buffy Summers?" Melaka Fray's color streamed hair fell over her shoulders. "No way I know my slayer history in her many years as slayer she racked up more kills and battle victories then anyone. She is easily marked as the greatest slayer of all time."
"Oh geez, I hate this. Miss goody two suede shoes is officially the greatest. Well bully for her." Faith kicked the dirt floor.
"I dunno." Fray shrugged. "I never met her or anything, so I can't, you know, tell but from what I've read, from what I've heard, Buffy really was pretty righteous."
"No, no don't get me wrong, I mean you gotta give the girl her props, I mean she kicked my butt enough times and the gal can take a hit, that's something I really respect."
"Yeah, well all slayers have, you know, inherent potential to be good at killing the undead, I always thought she was like…"
"Special? Yes she is. I mean all of us are special, but compared to her well, we're not all that special. I think that's why I still kinda hate her." Faith frowned.
-Just to get this out there, Fray is some kind of thief/slayer from the future. Yeah I know, that is kind of out there.
-Spike, he's a vampire, which is bad, but he has a soul, so he's good.
-Illyria, she's sorta Fred, well Fred's body or at least it was Fred's body now it's a god's. The Fred who died is with God and the Fred who's dead is a god.
-And Faith, she says she's still 5 multiplied by 5, but speaking confidentially I think she's older then 25.
The blond slayer stood alone having defeated all the vamps sent to fight her.
-This new slayer, well, she made fast work of those guys.
The slayer knelt down holding the gaze of the lioness, she reached down gently and began to pet the cat.
-But it looked like we were next.
The gates opened to the arena where the blond slayer waited sword in hand.
"Ok in you go." The guard called out.
He went along and took the shackles off of each of them.
"What?" Spike stared wide eyed.
"You heard." He jabbed him with his pike.
"Ow." Spike grabbed the end of the pike. "Quit it before I put that thing where the sun don't shine."
"So what's the deal?" Fray protested. "Are we seriously supposed to take her on without any of our powers?"
"Who says we don't have powers." Spike strode forward.
"We didn't before." Fray pointed out.
"Well you know if at first you don't succeed." Faith rammed into the blond slayer who was slammed back. "You have a second to see if it bleeds."
The slayer simply hopped to her feet. She smiled at Faith, and then dropped her hands to her sides.
"What you're going to drop your hands on me? Big mistake." She lashed out furiously but the girl leaned back avoiding her blow. Faith tried a roundhouse kick which missed her cleanly. Faith let lose a flurry of blows that the girl quickly sidestepped.
"Stay still you little twerp, what are you afraid to take a hit?"
Suddenly Faith's jaw was slammed backwards. She looked ahead dazed.
A powerful kick sent Faith careening away, tumbling to the ground unconscious.
"Ok, I think we're in trouble now." Fray gulped.
"C'mon luv, lets show this gal a thing or two." Spike waved to Illyria.
Spike jumped into the arena challenging the blond slayer.
The blond slayer looked at Spike strangely. "You, you are not human."
"No, not completely but neither are you luv." He kicked her in the face.
"Didn't see that one coming eh. Whatsthematter slayer? Don't you want to slay the inhuman monster?" The slayer caught him with a punch that struck him hard, he reeled backwards and onto the ground.
He looked up at her groggily. "Nice move luv."
She raised the stake in her hands above him.
She was struck in the chest, by a leather boot.
The slayer looked up at Illyria.
"You are not to kill this one; this one is under my protection." Illyria stood in front of Spike.
Illyria positioned herself in a battle stance. She shot Fray a look. Fray nodded.
Illyria came forward with a series of attacks each one blocked by the slayer.
The slayer looked at Illyria defiantly. "You have no chance, you cannot hit me."
Just then Fray jumped her from behind sending her forward onto her face.
Fray held her head in her hand and slammed it repeatedly against the stadium's dirt floor.
"Had enough?" Fray called out to the opponent beneath her.
"Not even close." She bucked Fray off of her and sent an elbow into her face.
"Sorry, but it's not about how hard you can hit." The blond slayer punched Fray in the chin with such force it sent her spinning. "It's about how hard you can get hit."
"Yes that is true." Illyria focused her effort into a massive punch which caught the blond slayer on the side of the head. She slammed into the ground.
Illyria knelt over the prone body of the slayer. "How hard you can get hit, and often you can get hit hard." Time seemed to slow as Illyria released blow after blow into the face of the blond slayer. Suddenly her body tensed and Illyria fell off of the slayer, clutching at her stomach in pain.
The slayer's head lolled to one side.
Spike caught Illyria as she collapsed. "Well, well this is interesting."
- Interesting yes but confusing, maybe I should start this at the beginning because I know you're wondering….
"What in the bloody hell is happening here?" Spike stood alongside Illyria they both were covered in blood and guts.
Faith pointed to another girl with bluish-purple hair. "Hey I know the skinny on everyone but you skinny."
"Huh?" Melaka Fray looked around her. Her outfitted was lined with protective knee and elbow pads, as well as generic high-tops. "I don't… Who are you all? What is with you heads and why are you all webbed up in clothing that is like hundreds of years, outta style."
"You call that fitness warrior outfit trendy honey?" Faith looked over Melaka.
"Could be worse luv, there was a time where it was fashionable for men to wear wigs and tights and frilly shirts." Spike adjusted his collar. "Not that I would know anything about that of course."
"Could somebody please tell me what's happening." Faith slammed the wall impatiently.
"Hitting inanimate objects isn't going to help in this instance; if you want to find out where we are maybe we should start looking around." Melaka Fray set out down the dark paths.
Spike pulled out his lighter and scanned the walls on the dark square cave like hallway. "It's not that I'm not happy to be here, that last thing I knew Illyria and I were facing death at the advancing demon hordes. No demons hordes here, so far so that's jolly good. Lots of dead bodies though."
"What?!" Fray looked around alarmed.
"This place, wherever we are, is full of corpses. I can smell 'em." Spike continued down the path.
Spike looked around the shallow narrow dark passages.
"They're catacombs." A voice replied in the dark.
"Wait a second I know that voice…" Spike cupped his ear.
"Catacombs? Like, as in a mall underground passage?" Faith stepped toward the voice cautiously.
"No, I don't mean some catacombs, I mean the catacombs. The underground burial chambers of the Romans." The voice came out of the darkness.
Spike sniffed at the air "But that can't be. There are a great number of bodies here that are very fresh, surely none that are 2000 years old like they should be."
"Oh everything is what it should be, but it's just not when it should be." The voice in the dark edged closer
Spike frowned. "Where do I know that voice from?"
"I don't blame you for not recognizing the sound of my voice, not that it's changed." Andrew stepped into the light. "But the sounds of the words that come out might not be that familiar to you."
"So we really are in the past?" Fray asked.
"No, not at all, right now we're in the present, you just came from the future, which was our present before we went into the past." Andrew explained.
"When in the past are we exactly?" Fray wondered.
"Um, Tuesday, April 4th."
"Hey it's my birthday." Faith smiled. She grabbed Andrew by the shirt. "I'd like my present now. Take us back to the future McFly."
A group of people rushed into the room wearing Roman Centurion uniforms. They rushed in carrying shields with their weapons drawn. "Stand down and surrender yourselves."
Andrew looked alarmed when he saw the soldiers. He ran to hide behind Spike.
"Surrender? Mate, there are four super powered individuals here; I don't care how many men you got, we're going to wipe the floor with you."
"He's right, you're not going to beat us." Faith stepped forward.
Andrew called out as the group stepped forward to engage the Romans. "Hey stop guys. You really don't want to do this now."
"C'mon Andrew, how could we possibly lose?" Spike cast a glance back at him as he went up to engage the group of centurions.
The group of super powered individuals and Andrew stood handcuffed and on their knees. A Roman came into the room; he wore the red cape of a Roman General.
"All right, who are you and what are you doing here?" The Roman General shouted in Latin.
"Sorry friend I don't speak Latin." Meleka Fray looked at him defiantly.
He looked at her for a moment then summoned a servant to him. He said something indistinguishable to him and the servant raced off.
"Put them in the cells, they will fight."
The group were taken and marched away.
They were all together in a large cell.
Andrew stood before them pleading on his knees. "Hey listen guys it's not my fault, I tried to get you to stop fighting."
"So it's not your fault that all of a sudden I'm defanged, and impotent." Spike prodded.
"You're impotent?" Andrew snickered.
"It's a metaphor you moron, and for your information the proper term is erectile dysfunction, and you can take a pill for it, of course you'd know that already don't you."
"Spike mi amigo, whatever are you implying."
"Oh come of it, you were one of the very few males, and I uses that term with reservation, in an abode abiding in wall to wall women. Who else did they belong to?"
"Um… I really wouldn't know anything about that, and besides I think they were fake anyway."
"What in the world are you guys babbling about?" Fray hovered over Andrew threateningly. "What is this Andrew? Why are our powers gone? Why have we been taken from our respective timelines and gathered together?"
"Two slayers, one demi goddess, and one ensouled vampire. Altogether a pretty powerful combination." Spike whistled.
"If you had your powers that is." Andrew said smugly.
"That's the thing see, I don't like anybody stealing from me." Melaka Fray grabbed Andrew by the throat and held him aloft.
"You'd best give me back what you've taken from me."
.
Andrew tried to gasp.
"Hey!" Faith knocked Fray off of Andrew.
Andrew fell to the floor coughing. "Thanks. I couldn't breath-"
Suddenly Faith's hand was around Andrews's throat as he lay on the ground.
"And with me cutting off your air supply like this, you still can't. Now when I let go the next thing I want to hear from you is answers. Ok?"
Andrew nodded.
Faith released her grip.
Andrew drew a deep breath in. "Thanks for not killing me Faith. I knew you didn't go bad again."
Faith grabbed his neck again. "Not hearing what I need to hear."
She released his neck again.
"It's not my fault really. This guy, bushy haired guy in sunglass, he just showed up at my door. "
"Why what did he want? Why would he go to you?"
"Well he had a question for me, he said it was something that only I knew the answer to."
Spike looked at him incredulously. "What possible question could he have asked that only you would know the answer to?"
The gang stood around staring blankly into space.
"So that's it." Illyria nodded. "That's why we are all here. It all makes sense I suppose."
"Kinda flattering really." Faith swaggered.
"I'll say." Fray smiled.
"Who's the baddest vampire with a soul now you poncy gel haired git."
"I've never met you. How did you know about me?" Melaka stared at Andrew.
"It's in one of the books Giles had, you know, the listing of the greatest slayers of all time."
"But I'm from your future."
"So when they say all time they really mean "all time". Spike whistled.
"But why not Buffy?" Faith looked to Andrew questioningly.
"Huh?"
"He asked you to list the four best fighters you knew of besides Buffy." Faith crossed her arms resolutely. "Why not Buffy?"
A short, thin, bushy hared man with dark sunglass and a black leather blazer, wearing tight black jeans and hobnail boots walked into the room, through the stone wall.
"Been just pleased enough by Buffy."
"But been enough seized, by Buffy."
"She's lots of fun but just…"
"The one." He pointed at Spike.
"two." He pointed at Illyria.
"Three." He pointed at Faith
"Four." At Fray.
"We'll have lots of fun with more."
"Huh." Faith stared blankly at him.
"Yeah, he talks like that." Andrew stepped forward.
"Who is he?" Fray stared at him.
Illyria looked closely at the man with the dark bushy hair and sunglasses. "Bob?"
"Bob?!" Spike frowned at her.
The man in sunglasses bowed to Illyria.
"Ah, her highness, pained and laid low."
"And I, no less, again to see you so…"
Illyria strode toward him slowly. "The Shimmer–man? I would not have thought it possible yet you live, does it give you pleasure to see me so lowered?"
Bob smiled at her.
"You are not powerless yet with less power."
"Yet you cower less then the least coward."
"Illyria you know this bloke?" Spike proceeded to interject himself between them.
Illyria continued to stare at the man in sunglasses. "He is one of the old ones like myself. He is the master of tongues, a weaver of words. The Shimmer-man."
"Or Bob?"
"That's what I call him." Andrew volunteered.
"So let me get this strait, you get Andrew to gather up all of us drag us off to Rome." Spike glared at Bob.
"Pompeii." Andrew volunteered.
"Pompeii wasn't that the city that was buried by a volcano?" Faith turned to Andrew alarmed.
"Oh don't worry it hasn't happed yet" Andrew said reassuringly patting Faith on the back.
"Oh. Ok." Faith furled her brow.
"Anyway we get hauled away to bleeding Pompeii for what?"
"Well it's so we can gather up the final member of our group." Andrew smiled. "Right Bob-"
They looked started as Bob seemed to flash out of existence.
Just then a door to the room began to open. A man wearing a worn and tattered robe with a hood that hid his face came in; he stood beside the general with the red cape.
"You can do this?" The General asked him.
"No the power is not mine but comes from our lord. But in him are all things possible."
They unlocked the cells. The man in the ragged robes came in spinning his fist around in a circle. He hit Spike. "Your tongue now speaks the tongue. Speak."
He slammed his fist down on top of Spike again.
"Speak."
Spike grabbed the wrists of the priest pummeling him and spoke aloud. (Speaking Latin)
"Stop hitting me."
"You speak Latin?"
"And you speak English. Or maybe it's like the man said, we each know the others tongue .um, that didn't come out right." Spike shook his head
"You!" The General pointed directly at Spike. "You are one of the soulless beasts…"
"And you." He pointed at Illyria. "And you are obviously not of our world.
He pointed to Fray and Faith. "Yet you two help them. "
The General shook his head. "Two vampire slayers in league with two beasts and a helpless innocent caught in your clutches."
"Helpless innocent? Oh, come on, we're not talking about Andrew here are we?" Faith looked him incredulously.
"Oh, I believe he was." Andrew squirmed his way up to the General. "Thank you for coming to save me General."
"Andrew, you little creep." Faith punched Andrew in the stomach.
"How did you know?" Fray looked up at the General.
"How did I know a slayer when I see one? I know slayers, it's my job to know slayers, I'm a watcher."
In the middle of the arena Spike slapped Illyria's unconscious form lightly in the face, as he cradled her in his arms. "C'mon back, luv."
Centurions surrounded them but they moved to help support the beaten bodies of Fray and Faith.
The General in the cape came out and knelt over the awakening form of the blond slayer. He helped her to her feet.
The blond slayer's legs were wobbly so she was steadied by him as she walked back. Fray said to Faith as they both stared at the blond slayer walking back to the gate. "I've never had much use for watchers, they can be monsters too."
"Yeah well, so can slayers." Faith shrugged.
The blond slayer looked downward, with a look of shame on her face. The man in the General's cape pat her on the back, he stopped her for a moment, then put his hand under her chin which hung down and pushed it up. He then let her walk on alone.
Fray elbowed Faith. "He's coming this way."
The caped man stepped up to them, as they waited in their cell. "You defeated her; I am greatly impressed, especially since you didn't coordinate your efforts for the most part. You fought her as individuals and yet still beat her. I am greatly impressed indeed and weary to see such an example of power that I see before me."
He motioned to the centurions around and they came over and began to release the shackles they wore around their wrists and ankles.
"You must forgive the misunderstanding; I had no idea of how great your power was until you defeated Lautitia. Please come this way." The General walked down the hall.
A group of servants beckoned them to follow, they were led to another area. They walked into a large room, lined up with sleeping cots, furniture, and roman style recessed tables. Various plates of fruits and cheeses meats were laid out before them.
"So all of a sudden you start to treat us nice because you realize we're living weapons and are therefore valuable to you." Spike sneered.
"That much is obvious, but I don't want uncontrollable weapons, that is not a good thing, and there are too many evil things walking around of late." The General regarded them coolly.
"I do not want you to feel prisoners here. We will make accommodations for you soon elsewhere, until that time relax."
He turned to Spike who still carried the unconscious form of Illyria. "If you require a physician for your lady friend."
"Are you kidding me I'm not about to let one of your 'drill into the top of her skull to release the evil spirits' quacks touch her." Spike turned away.
Andrew raised his index finger. "Actually Spike, Roman medicine was quite advanced."
"I don't care, no one touches her, she's alright." Spike laid her on one of the cots.
"Very well". The General marched off.
Illyria stirred in the cot Spike had placed her in. "Wesley?" She cried out softly.
"Wesley's dead luv." Spike looked down at her. "For a while there I though you were too."
"The girl, the slayer?"
"TKO luv."
She looked at him questioningly.
"You beat her." Spike smiled.
She smiled, and tried to lift her head, but her energy ebbed again and she fell back into the bed.
"Just get some rest ok." Spike took her hand and squeezed it, then tried to stand up to leave.
Illyria held his hand tightly and pulled him back close to her.
"No Spike my pet, do not leave me."
"You know it might be a little easier to be around you if you meant that as an expression of affection rather then its literal meaning of furry animal companion. I am not your bloody pet, pet."
She glared at him.
"And I mean pet as a term of affection."
She looked at him blankly then uttered a soft. "Please."
Spike's eyes narrowed, he sat down at the edge of the cot. "Sure pet what's up?"
She glared at him again.
"Term of affection remember?"
"Do you think… do you… did he love me?"
"Sorry love, you know it was Fred he loved. The girl whose body you're wearing." Spike lit a cigarette. "If he felt anything like that toward you it was because of her."
"I know…" Illyria looked down. "It is strange, she was but a paltry human, but I think I also love her."
"Sorry love?"
"Everything this Winifred Burkle knew, everything she experienced I also have experienced, her life is open to me. A small powerless human whose only asset was an exceptionally strong intelligence…"
Spike raised his brow to her.
"For a human." She continued.
"In my long lifetime, I beheld wonders and fought many glorious battles for the glory of my kingdom and its people, I loved my subjects and in return was revered and beloved by them all."
"Yet in all my life I have not felt the happiness, or the loneliness, or the feeling of loving and being loved like she did."
"For some reason I cannot help but see her as a great person."
"I am a great and powerful queen, jealous of the life of a simple peasant." She looked sadly downward.
Spike smirked. "You know, there's hope for you yet your highness."
She stared at Spike blankly.
"Look Fred, the girl whose body you took, was an example of the best of humanity. We all loved her because she was worth loving. How worthy were you of the adulation you received, or did they just bow down to you because if they didn't you'd cut the feet out under them?"
"I showed them strength. The people respect strength."
"Respect ain't the same thing as love, luv. You're worth of respect…"
"But not of love?"
"Are you? Let's face it you may look like her, but you're nothing alike, you're like her evil twin."
"Evil twin?" She looked at him confused.
"Nevermind, sodding pop culture references fly right over the head of someone who's just popped into our culture."
"All I'm saying is, that if you were to look up to someone, you know a person to aspire to be like, then there are a hell of a lot worse choices then Fred."
"He said I needed to change. I think he wanted me to be more like her."
"Maybe. What about you? Did you want to be more like her? Or just more liked by him." His gaze narrowed.
"I should slice your neck for daring to ask me such a thing." She raised her head in anger.
"I'm pretty sure that's something she wouldn't do." Spike smirked.
"Because of your simple nature, I will forgive these slights." Illyria turned away from him and moved her hand as if to shoe him away.
"You remind me of the fools and jesters of the courts of old. They too were of such a simple nature that their pranks and hyjinxs were forgiven because their masters found these creatures amusing."
"I get you get the gist that I just jest?" Spike smiled.
"You, you sounded like him…"
"Him? Him who?"
"Bob."
"Oh yeah, just what went on between you two anyhow. It almost sounds like you dated the guy."
Illyria stared down at the ground.
"Oh my God, you did date the guy!"
She continued to look downward.
"What did you see in a git like that, with his slick leather jacket and rock and roll hairdo?"
Spike patted down his leather jacket and slicked back his hair. "Um, what I mean is, well, your regal highness he doesn't exactly seem your type. What could he possibly have going for him?"
She turned to look downward and whispered. "His words."
"His what?" Spike's brow furled.
"The things he says, everything he utters, poetry all of it."
"You like poetry?" Spike's eyes widened.
"It is a weakness of mine." She said softly.
"You really like poetry?" Spike gazed at her in awe.
"Even bad poetry seems to stir the strings of my heart." She said seeming disgusted with herself.
"Really?" Spike gazed at her spellbound. Then suddenly noticed he was staring at her. "Well that, um, that's great…"
She looked at Spike suspiciously.
"Because, you know, it's too bad that rap gets bad poetry…" He twittered nervously.
She looked at him confused.
"What I mean is, um, poetry gets a bad rap."
"Which you really like, and that's great that you like…" He moved about happily.
"What does she like?" Faith came by them.
Spike looked at her alarmed; Illyria shot him a contemptuous look. "Er rap, she just loves that rap. Er, so whassup, er, um, be-otchs."
Tesserarius, the General, and an entourage walked into the room. "Here this is so you can clean yourself up."
A group of servants came in caring buckets of water and towels for the group.
Spike looked skeptically at the water.
"What is your problem? That is perfectly clean water." Tesserarius frowned.
Spike looked at the bucket skeptically. "Holy water?"
"Holy… water,? Oh right to go along with the holy air and holy earth holy fire."
"Really? They have all of those?" Spike looked at him incredulously.
"Makes about as much sense to me as holy water does."
"I don't get it. Lurks are in control of the city?" Fray grabbed a cloth and began clean her face.
"Lurks?" Faith asked.
"Yeah you know lurks…" Fray looked at her confused.
They looked at her skeptically
"Lurks, you know, vampires!" Fray said exasperated.
"How is that possible, I mean it is kinda hard for them to get around in daylight, and they aren't known for being highly organized." Faith interjected.
"Well that's because there is a coalition ruling things, some vampires, some demons, but mostly and strangely, most viciously, plain ordinary evil people." The General, Tesserarius paced pack and forth. "There are those that would fight that, many live in these catacombs. Runaway slaves, army deserters… Roman senators."
A man walked into the place dressed in a toga with a fine red sash. Various ornaments announced his position as a member of the Roman Senate.
"Wait there is something different about these ones." The senator turned toward the slayers but his eyes were white and without pupils.
"I sense you though I may not see you." The senator smiled.
"You're blind." Fray walked up to him
"There are none so blind as those who will not see."
Tesserarius gestured toward the senator. "Everyone this is my old friend Curia, now a Roman Senator."
"Tesserarius do my eyes deceive me, there should be but one chosen one, yet you seem to have three, and you will likely need every one before this is through."
"The situation is dire, but we have faced dire situations before. You have news?"
"Yes, none of it good."
"The emperor?"
"Has no desire to meddle in what seems to be normal political wrangling, he perceives no threat to himself so he does not care."
"This Caesar is another fool, descended from a long line of fools before him. So what is happening with the patrician families, and merchants?"
"They are corrupted most of them, too spoiled by promises of power, the will cede to his will." The senator frowned
"He controls the governorship, therefore he wields the power." Tesserarius shook his head.
"Who? Who wields the power? I mean it's nice to which ass were supposed to kick" Faith took a wet cloth to her blood soaked arm.
"He was a beloved comrade in arms, we served together for countless years." Tesserarius recounted. "Then there was the incident with the raiders over 20 years ago, we were victorious but the cost, the cost was unbearable. Ioculator was right in the middle of the action, nearly every man under his command died."
"A phyric victory?" Spike exclaimed.
"Yes, yes exactly it was not unlike the doomed campaigns of pherus." Tess nodded.
Despite our massive losses we were greeted as heroes when we arrived back in the city, but things had already begun to unravel in Ioculator's mind, he saw himself now as a villain not the hero he was being heralded as. I lost him when something precious was taken from him. He was closer then a brother to me till then, but that was a long time ago. I have no more illusions about what I must do."
He turned to face them. "What I do not understand is what you are all doing here."
"Like I said we want you to team up with us." Andrew volunteered.
"Shut up you git."
"We?" Tesserarius asked. "Who is we?"
"Well it's really this bushy hairdooed fella…" Spike started.
Faith moved to cut him off. "It doesn't matter who we are exactly, just know that we share the same enemy."
Tesserarius turned up his nose. "Do you really think that I could join with a vampire, even if he does consort with a …"
Faith wiped the last of the sticky blackish blood from her face.
Tesseraruis looked at her spellbound. "Slayer?"
"No it can't be." He stared at her dumbfounded; he slowly started walking toward Faith who stared up at him confused.
"Hey I don't care who you are buddy." Faith raised her fists." Back off before I have to put you down."
"It's you but…" Tesserarius furled his brow.
"But that's impossible…" He looked at her with tears in his eyes.
Faith stared up at him defiant, yet afraid.
"I mean it. Not another step." She drew back her fist.
He reached out his hand and caressed her face. "I though I would never lay eyes on you again, how is this possible?"
Faith swung her fist at him but he sidestepped the blow.
"Why do you strike at me?"
"Sorry I have problem with guys who don't understand the word no."
"You have no idea who I am, do you? But you're her I have no doubt in my mind you're her."
"Who do you think I am? Who am I supposed to be?"
"She died over two decades ago, on this very day."
"Today as in my birthday today? Who was this girl?"
"She was a slayer, the first slayer under my charge, I was of course much younger then I am now, not being a vampire like you're friend here."
"It's ok he has a soul." Faith stood behind Spike.
"A soul, you mean he feels things like a person would." Tess gazed at Spike.
"Yes exactly, he's changed, he's not the person he was."
"Vampires do not change. Their nature is to be a beast and drink blood, no matter how bad he might feel about it afterwards, it is in his nature to enjoy feeding on our kind."
"You are sort of right there." Spike lit a cigarette. "I still like hurting people; the truth is it's not any fun anymore unless they deserve it. Good thing there are so many things in this world that deserved to have their ass kicked. I may lay into some, but only to those who got it coming."
"So what's your story? Do you have it coming?" Tesserarius towered over Spike.
"Hold here." Fray stepped up to the General. Fray grabbed Spike by the collar and pulled him to the back of the room.
"We have to talk."
Fray stood before the group as they huddled together.
"Ok, what was that about?" Melaka Fray raised a brow.
"I dunno the guy is a little bit creepy, but I don't think he's dangerous, not to us anyway." Faith offered.
"So that's why we were brought here I guess, to contain the vampire threat." Fray injected.
"Hey do you think that's a good idea? Suppose we change history?" Spike said.
"Actually we're here so that history goes like it's supposed to." Andrew said matter of factly.
"Huh?" Melaka looked confused.
"This is the work of the Shimmer-man?" Illyria asked knowingly.
"Bob?" Andrew nodded. "Yeah this is his plan."
"So out with it, I don't like secrets." Melaka stood threatening before him. "What other things this Bob got in store for us?"
"I dunno…" Andrew backed away frightened.
"We'll see how much you don't know." Faith approached him.
"Which I imagine is quite a bit." Spike smirked.
Various training dummies and the like were set up in a courtyard.
"Nice little training area, you got here." Faith paced about the place.
"This is my compound." Tesserarius spread his arms wide showcasing the large villa he had erected. "It has more then enough room to accommodate you all."
"So you just live alone in a big empty house." Fray frowned.
"I am not alone." Tesserarius stretched his arm toward a fresco of Lautitia the blond slayer. "She has been under my care for just over a decade."
"Oh." Fray raised her brow.
Tesserarius gazed back to the days years before.
"I found her one day; she was caring two large burlap sacks. She looked no more then 5 or 6 years old."
The girl stood in the street with the sacks and wearing a modified burlap sack as clothing, her hair was ragged and unkempt and her face was dirty.
- I knew from her condition what she was, a runaway slave. Just a helpless little girl.
- That's the last time I though of her as helpless.
The girl kicked Tesserarius and started to run away.
- She nearly got away from me.
He chased after the little girl and caught up with her, he ran behind her right on her tail.
-At the time I thought I had her cornered. Turned out she had me exactly where she wanted me.
He fell through the hole in the floor covered by a carpet.
Tesserarius groaned and slowly got to his feet he called out of the hole. "Very good girl, I would not have thought a girl of your age to be so clever."
"Who are you? Why do you chase after me, I did nothing wrong, I have stolen nothing." The girl called down into the hole.
"You may not have taken anything from me but there's a great deal I have to give you."
"Why?"
"We both know why, we both know you're not like other girls, you're special. You're the slayer."
"Wow." Andrew looked on fascinated.
"So what exactly was in those sacks she carried?" Faith leaned in.
"Rats! Lots and lots of rats." Tesserarius said proudly. "She had gone out hunting in the morning to get food for the underground community of escaped slaves she was living with."
"They ate rats?" Faith looked disgusted.
Tesserarius gazed at her admiringly. "Amazing, a small child with such amazing skill, two whole sacks full."
"Rats?" Faith squirmed in her seat.
"She has been with me ever since. I have taught her all I know long ago. She has surpassed anyone I have trained or fought with or, anybody I've heard about for that matter. She is unparalleled."
"Is she really that good?" Fray looked at her skeptically.
"You've never seen Buffy have you." Spike offered.
Illyria shot Spike a cold look.
"I defeated this unparalleled creature, just because you say she is great does not mean that it is so. At heart she is… merely human." She looked at her bruised hand. "At one time she would have been naught but a knat in my sight."
"At one time perhaps…"
"Look your boss gathered us all together, what the heck is his agenda, what does he want us to do now." Spike stared at Andrew coldly.
"He's not my boss."
Spike raised his brow. "No?"
"No… he just kinda tells me what to do." Andrew squirmed in his chair.
"And you do it…"
"Yeah so?"
"So ergo he's your boss, look just tell us what you know about him, we have to figure out what his game is."
Suddenly, seemingly from nowhere, Bob walked into the room.
"My game? For shame…"
"I play no game. I'll say and explain."
"You've made gains, you've obtained her…"
"But you can't keep her chained, on her own contained."
"You can't keep her like a stone, cold and restrained. "
"You'll reap what you've sown in her well trained frame."
"So, just do as you will, as you will to do so."
"And so the flow goes, so go with the flow…"
He touched Andrew and a light flowed from his hand and encompassed Andrew.
Andrew crumpled to the ground.
"What did you do?" Faith turned to Bob.
Bob waved to them as he started to fade out of sight.
The gang rushed over to Andrew. "Are you ok?"
Andrew looked around groggily. "I know, cough, I know what we have to do."
"What, what do we do?"
"We…" Andrew passed out.
"Andrew buddy you ok?" Spike picked him up and laid him on a padded bench.
The doors careened open as Lautitia thundered in.
"Where is she?" The young blond slayer burst into the room, where the rest of the gang stood.
She strode up to Illyria and stood facing her. "You… you defeated me."
"Yes, that is so." Illyria smirked.
"I have never been beaten before. I stood unrivaled by any. "
"And now you find you are not as great as you believed. It stings, does it not?"
"Yes. But it is good. As we gain in this life so it is true we must lose in this life. For me the shame is not in losing, but in surrendering. And it is good to have a worthy opponent for once. I look forward to our next contest."
"Opponent?" Spike looked up at her. "Listen missy we just sussed things out with your watcher here and there's no need to beat the crap out of us again, we're on the same team."
"Team? Which team would that be?" The blond slayer looked at them fiercely.
Spike raised his hand. "Seeing as we're mostly girls, I think we'd better opt for skins."
Lautitia shouted at Tesserarius. "You think I would ally myself with a vampire?"
"He's not a soulless beast." Faith offered.
"But all vampires are." Lautitia held the stake in her hand.
"Well I'm more or less a soulful beast. "
"You got soul Spike my man, you're not Otis Redding but you got soul." Faith volunteered.
Lautitia stood before Spike and gazed into his eyes. Gradually her face began to soften; she smiled at Spike, and then turned to Tesserarius. "He is restored? How?"
"That doesn't matter; it's enough that the beast is allied with us. Do you think we could fight the forces arrayed against us alone? " Tesserarius stood resolutely.
"You are one of Rome's greatest generals." Lautitia looked up to Tesserarius
"Which means little now that I no longer command an army."
"I think we're supposed to be your army." Fray cut in.
"Now hold on, no way is anyone giving me a crew cut." Spike slicked back his hair.
"So does anybody know what to do?" Fray shrugged.
"I know, I know what to do." Andrew sprung up eyes wide from where he lay resting.
"Hallelujah." Faith exclaimed.
"So what the scoop?" Fray asked.
"It's…" Andrew started then stared ahead blankly. "Um, er… I just forgot, but it's on the tip if my tongue, it's, its… Dammit!" He shook his head. "I had it but now it's gone."
"Wonderful." Spike quipped.
"Wait I got it, again." He jumped up excited.
They looked to him expectantly.
"Only I forget again. Why? It doesn't make sense."
"No, it makes perfect sense that you can't make sense of it. Bob must've put a whammy on you." Spike postulated.
"He's been whammed, I'll be damned." Fray added.
"Oh, that was a clever rhyme." Illyria bowed slightly to Fray.
Spike gave Fray a petty jealous look.
"So you're saying although he might know the info he can't tell us about it?" Faith asked.
"Right, he tries to tell what he knows and suddenly he doesn't know it." Spike puffed up his chest and strutted before them, he turned to Illyria. "So no know is a no-no, no?"
"Yes, yes, yes, yes!" The dark haired woman screamed as the couple wrestled in the bed.
"Oh God yes." The young woman bent down and kissed the dark haired man, then tumbled off of him.
"My dearest, should I go down to the cellar and fetch you something to eat?" The young woman gazed lovingly at the man of about 30 years that stood before her. He was thin yet well built and unusually tall. He smiled broadly from ear to eat.
"No I want something fresh tonight, something young, something not quite ripe." He called out to her.
"I spied something I fancied. A young maiden but still a girl, she washes feet…"
The gang stood around with their feet in small wooden tubs. A young girl was pouring in hot water and scrubbing their feet.
"I don't get it what's with all the foot washing? This some kinda fetish of yours?" Faith held her leg aloft and looked over at General Tesserarius.
"It might have more to do with the fact that these blokes walk about in sandals all the time." Spike paced near the group wearing a toga but eschewing sandals for his boots, having not opted for a footbath like the rest of them. "Not a problem I have."
Tesseraruis said warmly. "It is a custom and it is relaxing."
"Ya got that right." Faith leaned back and closed her eyes.
The footbath girl poured the rest of the hot water from a kettle into Faith's tub. Then bowed and left.
"As relaxing as it can get in a town run by vampires." Fray noted casually, her eyes followed the girl as she walked away.
"So what you're saying is that the governorship of this city in effect is controlled by a vampire?"
"Yes he has the control of all the resources of the city and province. The thing is, most of the subjects under his control in the army and elsewhere are humans. If they knew who he really was, well…" Tesserarius sipped his wine.
"So what you're saying is we have to get him to reveal himself publicly?" Faith nodded. "That shouldn't be that hard."
"The spectacles for the spectators at the auditorium have grown evermore spectacular." Lautitia noted.
"The shows have brought in travelers from all over. The tales of the prowess of the slayer have reached far and wide and many of the people want to see her. There is a holiday celebration taking place in a few days. They expect the biggest attendance in history on that night." Tesserarius took another sip of wine.
"So you think we should just lie low until then?" Faith asked.
"Yes well, there is the matter of reclaiming my crown." Lautitia looked over at Illyria.
"You mean to challenge me?" Illyria stared at her, using her mind to transform the white toga she was wearing into the tight black leathers she wore ordinarily. "Do you not know your better when you see her?"
"Ladies, ladies let's save it for the rematch huh?" Spike stepped between them.
"Oh man, this is gonna be so cool, the super slayer challenges Illyria the once great god and the only person to ever defeat her." Andrew splashed his feet excitedly. "This match is for championship title. We'll call it The Stompin' in Pompin'."
"It's Pompeii, you blooming idiot."
"In India?" Andrew looked at him seriously.
"Hey, she was here just a moment ago." Faith started to look around. "Where did Fray disappear to?"
Fray stalked the alleyways, tracking the young girl from the foot bath. The girl wandered into an alley, she stuck her hands on a metal grating and pulled up on it. She slipped into the entrance, replacing the grate after her. She made her way through the underground tunnels.
Voices could be heard coming from a group of people that were gathered together in an area lit by torches. Fray stuck close to the shadows.
"So what did you hear? The newcomers, the ones who fight in the arena, are they a danger to us?"
"So many of us wind up as chattel in that awful place."
A man who seemed to be in charge held his hands aloft. "No, they are no danger to us, we who serve the God of love. They come to protect us. They are God's servants. Right, Melaka Fray?"
The man looked up and that's when Fray first noticed that the man was blind. "Senator?"
"Yes, among other things, but my capacity now as bishop of our church."
"Right, the god of love, in Rome that's Apollo right?"
"Not the Roman idol, the one true God."
"My lord you're, you're among the first Christians." Fray stepped backwards. "Do, do you all live like this?"
"It is forbidden to practice our faith, love the God who loves all and is all love. We must hide our ceremonies from the eyes of others."
"Oh yeah, forgot about that." Melaka grimaced
"Look, you guys look hungry." Melaka clapped her hands together. "You wouldn't be up for something besides loaves and fishes? "
Suddenly two vampires burst into the room. The senator shouted. "Oh no, it's another attack by the servants of the devil."
The group of Christians began to scatter and flee. Immediately the two vampires focused on the little girl. They grabbed her.
Fray looked around the room. "This has got to be first church I've been to without a cross."
She smashed a small stool and picked up the shards. The vampire held the little girl aloft.
Fray ran toward him stake in hand. "No, you don't get this one. You're not getting this girl."
She quickly staked him and caught the girl as she fell to the ground.
The other vampire started heading toward the door. "Where do you think you're going?"
She gathered the rest of the chair fragments together in her hands.
She slammed the vampire against the wall.
"Now." She took a large piece if wood and plunged it into him.
"You." she took another piece and slammed it into the vampire
"Are going." Jab, she plunged the shard in.
Jab, she repeated, jab, again. "To tell me."
She took the largest chunk and plunged it into his stomach. "Everything."
Fray walked in carrying a sack over her shoulder and a holding a girl's small hand in hers. "Everybody, this is Sollertia."
"Hey, you're the girl from the foot baths." Faith looked at her.
"She was just attacked by lurks."
"Lurk? Oh right vampire." Spike furled his brow. "How did you know that? Did you follow her?"
"Yeah, of course." Melaka shrugged.
"Why?"
Why do you think? She looked poor and thin like she could use a little to eat.
"And you just thought you'd steal it for them?" Spike paced in front of her.
"Why? Do you have a problem with that?" Fray challenged him.
Spike turned nonchalant. "Nope, just making sure."
"I have a problem with that." Tesserarius grabbed one of the near empty sacks from Fray. "This produce it's from Frux Fruits down the way correct?"
"How'd…" Fray stopped and just looked at Tesserarius.
"He has the best produce in the market; I didn't figure you to be the type that would go for second best."
"You got that right."
Tess approached her and gave her a pouch. She opened it. Inside were many crudely printed silver and gold coins.
She gazed at the money wide eyed. "Oh my…"
"Pay for this, make this right." He turned away from her.
She called out to him. "I dusted two vamps and got a name off one of them."
He stopped and turned around slowly. "A name?"
"Yes, this guy is apparently one of the big bosses around here, guy by the name of."
"Ioculator?"
"Yes that's right, how did you?"
"He seems to have a taste for little girls." Tesserarius clasped his hands behind his back.
Fray's eyes narrowed as she approached him. "Really, well then, the only question is…"
She turned to face Tesserarius. "When do we kill him?"
Lautitia approached Andrew who was sitting alone. "The clothes you wore when you arrived, and the things you carried, they are very beautiful, tell me about the land you come from."
Andrew squirmed away from her. "Um, you wanna know about us in the 20th century?"
"21st century…" Spike shook his head. "It's no wonder you suck at time travel."
"Well it's pretty cool, we have cars and..." Andrew began.
Lautitia looked at Andrew puzzled.
"What I mean is, um, we have, um, horseless chariots and flying machines carrying hundreds of people."
"Surely your world is one of wondrous magic." Lautitia's eyes widened
"Not really, there's this thing called science and technology." Andrew folded his arms.
"Really, so how is it possible for hundreds to become airborne?" Lautitia looked at him bright eyed.
"Well there's a metal tube with wings… er…and because of the wings' shape there are areas of high and low pressure…" Andrew mimed.
She looked at him very confused.
Andrew cleared his throat. "That is to say yes, very powerful magic in our world."
"But there is normal stuff too, like the mall." He added.
"The mall?" Lautitia furled her brow.
"Well yeah, they sell a lot of stuff there."
"It is like a market?"
"Sort of like your markets but indoors without any of the dead pigs and cabbages. Hey that's where the Cineplex movie theatre is."
"Movie theater. What is a movie?"
"You've never seen a movie?" He stared at her astonished.
"How the hell she supposed to see a movie mate, it's 1900 years till they invent the bleeding movie camera." Spike punched Andrew in the arm.
"Oh yeah." Andrew rubbed his sore arm.
"But don't you worry I'm going to tell you everything you ever want to know about movies." Andrew smiled at Lautitia.
"Oh great." Spike rolled his eyes.
Faith approached the General. "So what's your story, what was this slayer to you, the one you say I look like?"
"It does not matter." He continued to look down away from her.
"If it doesn't matter then why won't you look at me?" Faith looked down at him.
He raised his face to hers but kept his eyes downcast. "I cannot, I dare not. It's… your hair, your skin…" He reached out nimbly with his fingers and placed them on top of her hands. "Your hands, all like hers."
She looked down at him sympathetically.
"Please stop." She withdrew her hand.
"My god, even your voice."
He stirred himself. "I'm sorry, that was…"
He looked up to face her. "Unbecoming of me."
"Spike mi amigo," Andrew approached Spike from behind and grabbed him by the shoulder. "So check out the new slayer chick, she's pretty hot isn't she."
Spike took a swig from the wine bottle and stared over past Lautitia the Slayer to Illyria. "Oh definitely hot, with a splash of cool for effect."
"So do you think she likes me?"
"Illyria? Are you kidding me mate? She doesn't give a fig about you, or me for that matter." Spike sighed and took another big swig.
"No not her, Lautitia, the new slayer."
"Oh her, oh yeah, I'm sure she was really impressed with entire plot summation of the star wars series."
"Really you don't think it was a bit much?"
Spike gave Andrew a withering look.
Andrew slumped down. "I dunno sometimes if I find a girl I like, like really, well like, really, really well like them. Like that, I tend to go overboard."
"Like I get it. like, but I don't overlike the word like. "
"Like really?"
Spike tilled his head back and swallowed deep gulps from the bottle. "Don't let it go to your head, we've all overdone things like that, it's what happens to a man when a woman is involved."
Spike sighed. "I mean you care about them, you want to get to know them and respectfully get their love, their respect, but no can't have that, no I have to go for the gal that likes to treat me like dirt. The gal who enjoys kicking the tar out of me. The girl who feels I'm so far beneath her."
"Spike, are you ok?"
Spike took another swig of the bottle of red wine.
"If she thinks I'm going to moon over her like a lovesick fool she's got another think coming."
"Oh by the way…" Spike leaned on Andrew as he pulled some papers from his pocket and unfolded it.
Spike handed it to Andrew. "So whatdoya think." he slurred.
Andrew read aloud from the paper.
"Illyria, Illyria, none can comparia.
Whether sickened with malaria
Or they should kill or bury ya.
I'll be there to carry ya.
Just don't make me marry ya."
"You're writing poetry?" Andrew started to laugh.
"No, its not bleeding poetry. Poetry ha, ha, poetry is for sissies. It's not a poem, it's…it's… a song."
"A song? So where are the music notations?"
"Oh no, you see this is just the lyrics. But I got this idea for a power cord that goes like..." Spike strummed and strutted his air guitar. "Bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, like that right."
"This is love song then? With you vampires it's sometimes hard to tell."
"Nevermind." Spike grabbed the sheet back from Andrew.
He turned around defensively. "I'll have you know she likes poetry, um, I mean music."
"Oh. Ok. Even bad poetry, um sorry, I mean even bad music?"
Spike looked at him wounded. As he turned and started walking away he stifled the frog in is throat long enough to let out a choked,"I'll show you."
Andrew stepped after him. "Spike, Spike what? What's the matter, what did I say?"
"What's my say in the matter?"
"None." Tesserarius scolded Lautitia. "Come we need to go over the plans for the night."
"What's there to plan? We wait till General Ioculator shows his face then we put him down." Faith swaggered up to him.
It is not going to prove that easy. His box is very secure. He has loyal vampire soldiers at all main checkpoints around the arena.
"We can get there from the arena's, floor right." Faith looked down at a set of plans on the table.
"Those walls are quite high, you will not be able to jump them, you'll have to climb up them. That will take time. Especially with a whole slew of people ready to put an arrow into a slow moving target like you." Tesserarius said matter of factly.
"Slow moving?" Faith was insulted.
"Look I do not doubt your skill, yet without proper strategy you are not much more then an ordinary soldier. The woman you were was more then a mere soldier, she was a master tactician."
"Is that your offer to teach me?"
"Pull up a chair."
Faith slowly sat down at the table.
"Look that night the arena is going to more crowded then you would believe possible. " Tess pointed out.
Faith studied the map. "With all of them crowding the place is going to make it extremely difficult for the soldiers to control the crowd, if things were to get out of hand."
"Hey I like your way of thinking, exploit your enemies' weaknesses." Tesserarius smiled at Faith. "There's the girl I remember, you have a talent for this it's innate."
Illyria looked over at Lautitia.
Spike came up beside Illyria "She got you scared, luv?"
"I do not fear her."
"No but you're scared to lose and you're pretty sure she's going to clean your clock."
"Polish my timepiece? Why would she?"
"I mean you think you're going to lose."
"It does not matter; everything has been taken from me what's one more thing." She hung down her head.
Spike squinted. "All right, I've got it, you've got nothing, all your friends have abandoned you, and somehow you think you deserve it because why else is all this bad stuff happening to you, right?
She looked at him coldly, but hurt. "How dare you."
Spike snapped his fingers, that's it isn't it.
Spike paced back and forth
"Right, right, right no problem I get this, you're down and you need cheering up so you can do what you have to do to win the fight, then you come back with a big axe thingy, and I'm in like Flynn."
illyria continued to look at Spike perplexed.
"Hey Illyria, who here is the million year old goddess, who ruled over a great kingdom?" Spike gazed intensely at Illyria. "Illyria the great, that's who."
"You, you think I can win this contest?" She half smiled. "You know that I am no longer as I was. I am diminished."
"Yeah I know, you lost a bit of your mojo … but not your moxy. And you know something luv, I don't think you're all that diminished, you were moving really, really fast for a while there. Ok afterwards you ended up prone and defenseless, but hey it all depends on the way you look at it, is the glass fully half empty kind of thing."
Spike grabbed her shoulder. "I have no doubt you can mop the floor with this…"
"Illyria girl…" Andrew exclaimed.
"Really?" Lautitia asked.
"Oh no problem, I mean, if you weren't so beat up from taking out the rest of those louts." Andrew looked up at the group. "Um, I mean my nice companions, then she would never have taken you. One on one she doesn't stand a chance."
"Andrew thank you, your encouragement means a lot."
"Um, really?"
'Oh yes, I can't believe how great a time I've had with you, listening to all your stories, all day long. It's…"
"Too much, I know I'm sorry, it's just that I really like you and I wanna talk to you, really talk to you, about you and me and my family and my life. But it's easier for me to talk about other people, other things. Like Star Wars, Dr Who and Timothy Dalton who totally rocks and…" Tears started to stream down his face.
He stopped and stared at her. "I'm probably boring you and you don't have the heart to tell me to buzz off."
She looked at him dismayed.
"You, you are weeping and wining like a woman." She leaned in and lightly kissed him. "I did not think they made men like you, at least men like you who like women."
"Oh, um, really?" Andrew looked to her nervously. "You know most people don't think it's a real big whoop being a real big wuss."
"I do not think you are a coward; it is brave to be unafraid to show others how you feel."
Tesserarius stood over a large battle map. Several blocks representing soldiers and military units were laid in formation on top of the map.
"Then Alexander struck, he thrust his cavalry right down the middle of the army dividing it in two." Tesserarius moved the carved wooden markers denoting troops and horses. "He wedged the cavalry between the lined up Persian army breaking their formation and causing chaos."
He took several pieces carved like soldiers riding chariots and pushed them into the center of the massive pile of blocks representing the Persian army.
Faith looked down at the board, where the Alexander's white cavalry stood between the Persians black foot soldiers. "Divide and conquer."
"The Persians unit cohesion completely fell apart."
He moved Alexander's small infantry to encircle the large Persian one.
"Alexander's army marched up quickly to press them on either side with their phalanx and just pressed into them. Either they were pierced by the Macedonians swords or lances or were hacked down by Alexander and his cavalry that had pressed into the center of their army."
Faith leaned over the table and stared at Tesserarius seriously. "Hey do you mind if I ask you a question?"
"It is a student's job to ask questions, questions are rarely a bad thing."
"What's your story? You were a General in the army right? What about your battles, I mean, you must have stories to tell."
"No, there no heroes in my stories like in your tales."
"Hey baby, I ain't no hero neither. Now spill…"
He stared at her impassionedly, and stood resolute.
She shook her head and started to turn around. "Nevermind."
He grabbed her arm to stop her.
She turned to face him.
He motioned to the chair and she sat down.
He paced before her. "We Romans were so good, so dominant for so long that sometimes it no longer felt like battle merely slaughter."
"I fought in the north, the forests of Gaul. Our enemy was too weak to face us directly. They kept their armies hidden, striking at the times and places of their choosing. But they were never really a threat. They were more akin to a long festering wound in your side, painful and irritating, but not fatal."
"It went on this way for a while. We weren't taking too many losses but the constant bleeding was enough to concern the high command. And so they decided to clamp down on the situation. The orders came down to liquidate the area."
"Liquidate, I don't understand. What does that mean?" Faith looked at him confused.
"It meant that most of the women and children were shackled and sold into slavery, and most of the men were killed outright."
"What?"
"I kind of got tired of serving in the Roman Army after that."
"Look it's great to know military tactics and I think it's an excellent idea for you to train to develop you capacities. But don't think there's any glory in war."
"You think that I think war is a beautiful thing?"
"Don't kid yourself, we both know you do. It's where people like us are comfortable; we were not made for peaceful times."
"You know, you kinda remind me of somebody, this older guy I used know. Not that I knew him in the biblical sense, just well, you remind me of him a bit, only…um…"
"Only what?"
"Less evil…"
"Well at least I think you're less evil, I mean you could be evil and are just pretending to be good."
"You think I'm pretending to be good?"
"Are you? Are you really good?" Faith shook her head as if to clear it. "No. Look it's just with the kinda life I've had I've become a bit."
"Paranoid? Yes I know, but let me put it to you this way, what if they really are out to get you. I mean then your paranoia would be rational in nature right?" He smiled at her.
"Hmm. Good points… but you didn't answer my question, man." She grabbed him and slammed him against the wall. "Are you bad?"
"Are you mad woman?" Spike turned as Fray bore down on him clutching a cross before her
He turned around but failed to avoid her, she pressed a cross into the flesh of his face.
"Arrgh! Ahhh! What have you done? What have you done? You've done something…" Spike felt at his face cautiously.
"What is he going on about?" Andrew asked.
"This cross…" Spike snatched it in his hand. "It doesn't burn, it doesn't do anything."
"That's right crosses don't work here." Fray snatched the cross back from Spike.
"Why would the instrument of death, the roman's prime means of execution be a sign meant to hurt these creatures?" Lautitia frowned.
"This doesn't make any sense, why isn't there any power in the cross?" Andrew felt the cross around his neck.
"This could be a problem." Fray sighed.
"This is bad, very bad." Andrew frowned.
"Good, good, very good." Tesserarius smiled at Faith as she pressed him up against the wall.
Faith stared down at Tesserarius. "I think that maybe you're protesting too much."
"Oh I don't think that's possible, you were very, very good. You were at least five feet from me. I would have easily avoided almost anyone, there's very few humans or vampires or even slayers that can't easily defeat. But not you no, you're good, as good as she was and she was damn good."
"So what? You're admitting to me that you're evil?"
"Do you believe yourself to wholly good?"
"We are not talking about me."
"Well how about you believe me when I say that I am on your side, completely. I won't let anything hurt you."
"Why?"
"Do you really want to know why?"
"Yeah, um maybe. I dunno." She squirmed uncomfortably.
He faced her calmly. "When I look at you, it's suddenly like, like she is returned, come back to me, and now that I have her I dare not lose her again."
"But I'm not her."
"Yes I know, it's just, you both, you don't just look the same. You smell the same, you think the same, you fight the same. I never placed much stock in the religion of the Hindus in the land of India, they preached that we are reborn after death."
"Reincarnation?"
"Yes, I never used to believe in it, but after what I see in you, well I am no longer sure what I believe."
"You think I'm the reincarnation of your old student?"
"I was her watcher, and she was very dear to me, more dear then can be encompassed by the roles of watcher and slayer, she was more then just my student."
"Yeah that's the funny thing; I never got along with any of my watchers. But I can see how you and this chick could be pretty tight."
"Yes well, I won't tell you to trust me because I know that you won't trust me, and it's not just me, you don't trust anyone, not until they prove themselves to you."
Faith looked at him wide eyed.
"She was like that, so I know I must be patient and wait until I prove myself trustworthy to you."
She let her weight off of him and he slumped to the ground. "Ok, ok,."
She got up and reached out her hand to help him to his feet. He smiled at her broadly as he arranged the wooden army soldiers on top of a topographical map
She sidled up to him. "Some more kinds of tricks of warfare you believe you'd be willing to impart?"
"You're more than willing part in being tricked into believing in some kind of fair war." Governor Ioculator looked over to a dark haired woman who lay on a nearby bench. Ioculator arranged his carved wooded pieces designating military units over a large map that lay on the table.
An aide stepped into the room where Ioculator stood pouring over his battle maps. "My lord there is an emissary here from Rome."
"What?" Ioculator looked up from his maps.
The dark haired young woman sitting beside him looked up at Ioculator frightened. "Is Caesar checking up on you?"
"Perhaps Sanguis, but that would not bode well." Ioculator turned again to his aide. "Who is he, this emissary?"
"He claims to be a Roman Senator." The aide replied.
"So it seems the emperor still remains oblivious, good. The senate has no military power, they are no threat to me. Send in this member of the senate."
A thin man with gray hair stepped slowly into the room, he gazed ahead blankly, his eyes were white and pupiless. He interlocked arms with a servant that helped guide him.
The dark haired girl looked t him startled and afraid. She moved under the chair as if to hide herself behind it.
"Ah General Ioculator, good to not see you." The blind man smiled.
"Ah Curia, it's only you; I was expecting someone of importance. So it's the senate now, why? You were always the smart one, why waste your time arguing with people to pass laws you have no power to enact. Eh, oh well I guess you must feel right at home surrounded by others equally as useless."
"Look at you." Ioculator sneered over him. "Oh right, I guess you can't do that either. I can't believe that at one time I was actually afraid of you; truth is you're not that scary. "
"You truly believe that? Or you just say it because you realize I'm a threat to you." Curio calmly folded his arms.
"If you were ever a threat to me we wouldn't be talking, I'd kill you." Ioculator sighed. "Such a disappointment, you had such promise."
"Heh, I could say the same for you. Even so they like you in Rome, tax revenues have gone up heartily since you've become governor. Caesar is pleased as punch, You know when I heard about that it struck me at being very funny, why would you, of all people, give Caesar excess gold when you could have kept it for yourself. You are not the kind that does something for nothing, so you must be doing something that requires you to be in the emperors' favor."
The blind man stopped and turned around "Wait there's something, someone here."
He turned directly to focus on the woman who his behind a chair. . He stretched out his hands into the air, as if remotely feeling the girls face with his fingers. "Sanguis?" He began to choke up. "My Sanguis?" He move toward her
Sanguis looked at him guiltily and moved from the chair to stand behind Ioculator.
His white pupiless eyes bore down on Ioculator as if he was not blind. "What have you done with her, you had no right."
"I have no right? As if you really cared, unlike you I have never let her come to harm."
Curio stood before Sanguis again and stretched out his hands in the air as if feeling it. "She is, she is whole!?"
Ioculator smiled. "We are not so unalike you and I, we are both ruled by our desires, only we do not desire the same things." He glanced back at Sanguis. "Save for one."
"I know what it is that you desire." Ioculator stepped aside revealing Sanguis behind him.
Ioculator stood behind the Sanguis and held her by the shoulders. "It's not too late, to come back into the fold."
Curio looked at Sanguis with sad eyes. "No, I'm sorry it is, far too late."
He turned back at Ioculator pulling a scroll from his toga.
"Then there was this." He passed Ioculator the scroll
Ioculator unrolled it partially. "So, it's an imperial writ."
"A writ designating procurement of military supplies for the legion stationed in Pompeii, you see this was the strangest thing of all."
Ioculator looked at him with burning eyes. "Why?"
"Oh, you already know why, the legion doesn't exist. Pretty threatening information, eh?"
Ioculator nodded slowly. "Yes, yes you are right my old friend, good for you." He pat him appreciatively on the back.
"Sorry, now I'll have to kill you."
Ioculator grabbed the Senator by the throat and held him up against the wall.
Suddenly the wall behind the senator began to give way. Brick and mortar split as the wall began to collapse. Ioculator and his entourage looked out through the dust at the wreckage.
"Dearest?" Sanguis looked about confused. "Who dares?"
Illyria stood flanked on either side by Fray and Faith.
Fray got to the Senator and helped him up, while Faith and Illyria took the fight to Ioculator and his guards.
Fray gathered the Senator up and rushed through the hole that had been beaten into the brick wall. "We've got the grab, let's book."
Faith followed Fray out while Illyria battled the centurions at the narrowed passage of the wall opening. "I cannot hold them off indefinitely." She called out behind her. "Faith!"
Faith came up beside Illyria helping her battle the centurions, Illyria turned to her. "Hold here."
Illyria turned and ran off.
"Hey scary blue lady where you going? I could use a little help here." Faith fought them desperately.
Just then a large statue was thrown at the hole in the wall. It smashed into it embedding itself in the wall blocking off the opening they had made through the wall.
Illyria raised her eyebrow. "A hole in one."
Faith dusted herself off. "Or at least one in the hole."
Curio stumbled in supported partly by Melaka Fray.
"Well?" Tess looked to him hopefully.
Curio looked down at the ground. "I'm sorry."
"Damn! So he didn't give you anything, towns these troops might be coming from, mercenary lists anything?" Tesserarius asked.
"Nope it didn't rattle him at all, he didn't give me anybody's name, didn't ask me how I found out about it or anything, he just tried to kill me." Curio recalled.
"I should have figured as much he is far to smart far too controlled to be tripped up in that way. I put your life in danger for nothing."
"As long as he's around our lives are in danger anyway."
Fray tossed a sack to Illyria. "Come on."
"What is it that you wish?"
"For you to get in gear and help me deliver this food down to the runaway slaves and others hiding out in the catacombs."
"The caves?"
"Yeah so come on, I mean I can handle most things I come across, but you, you're on a whole other level, I'd rather go in with overwhelming force. I can relate to these people. I don't want any of them getting hurt."
"I do not know if I wish to involve myself with…"
"Please blue lady, can you come with us." Solleri beat her eyes at her.
"I don't know how to say this but I've seen you fight and you were really great." Solleri shyly walked up to Illyria.
"Looks like you've got a fan." Fray whipped her hair back and smiled crookedly.
Illyria answered impassively. "I will go, for the sake of the child. I will go."
She flung the sack around her back and headed for the door with Fray and the young girl. Illyria leaned down to the girl and said. "So you live in caves? I used to live in a cave, well… I mean, that is, I knew a friend who lived in a cave."
Fray kicked at Andrew.
"What?"
"You're coming too."
"Can't I stay here where there is less chance of being eaten?"
She pulled him up by the ear. "Ow, ow, ow, I'm coming, I'm coming, lemme go."
The walked along the stalls of the crowed marketplace. Everything seemed to be sold from peaches, dates, giant sides of pork, to corn brooms and buckets. Fray stood with heavy baskets of food in her arms. "I think this should do."
"We'll hurry up pay for it and let's get out here." Faith helped carry the goods. "I was going to meet Tess for practice so I can't deliver this stuff with you guys."
"That's ok it's no big deal, no big thing, big mama."
"You calling me big?" Faith looked at her sideways.
Fray noticed the shopkeeper helping another costumer and turning his back to her. "Right, let's book, let's get out of here." Melaka turned to go.
Faith stepped right in front of her. "What do you think you're doing?"
"What thieves tend to do, or did you forget that's who I am?" Fray was annoyed. "Besides since when did you become so righteous?"
"I'm not." Faith seemed exasperated. "Tesserarius told you to pay for it; he gave you the money for that purpose precisely so you wouldn't steal it."
Fray brushed her off. "What? You wanna just let Generalissimo Watcher push you around? Tell you what you can or cannot do?"
"Don't you get it you selfish bitch, I understand about wanting to fulfill your desires, I admit it I'm as materialistic as the next guy, maybe more so." Faith with her hands on her hips thrust herself forward at Fray. "But this isn't about desire it's about tactics and about judgment."
"Let's say something goes wrong." Faith postulated.
"Don't worry I never get caught."
"Maybe, but how many will you hurt or injure in your attempt to escape? We can't afford a scene like that, it's an unnecessary risk."
"Excuse me miss, you haven't paid yet." The merchant called out to Fray.
Fray turned around and sighed. "How much is it?"
They wandered into the catacomb, the walls were filled with different inscriptions
"Wow! Look at how often this fish motif appears on the walls." Fray looked at the drawings scraped and cut into the walls of the catacombs.
"Yes of course, it makes sense, that was the symbol the early Christians used, the fish." Andrew snapped his fingers.
"What are you babbling about? You see something." Fray looked over at Andrew.
"Something that I didn't see before, yeah I guess you could say that." Andrew looked ahead blankly.
"Did you ever make sense, or were you born a spazz?"
"I dunno if I would call it born like this, but I was evil once so maybe I was, I dunno, demon spawned like it., or hatched I could have been hatched like this." Andrew fidgeted nervously. "No it's spawned, defiantly spawned."
Illyria looked at an old rusty set of leg irons someone had hacked off amid the squalor of the underground living space. "Slavery. In the many forms it takes truly is an abomination."
"Oh please." Fray exclaimed. "You talk about slavery like you didn't rule over a nation of people that were your slaves."
"They were not my slaves; they stayed with me because it was their will to do so. My kingdom was fair and just. This…" She motioned at the shackles. "Would not have happened under my rule. "
"Sorry if I might have misjudged you, I'm just not used to the people in power giving a hoot about the down and out. So what happened to anybody that didn't want to follow your rule?"
"They were exiled, if they continued to stay and sow insurrection I had them jailed."
"Just jailed, really?"
"My dungeon was not pleasant."
"Oh."
"Yes I know, I showed far too much mercy to those malcontents. It is my curse to be sensitive and soft hearted." Illyria stared at her coldly, impassibly. These Roman rulers would simply have killed or made slaves of dissenters."
"You know when you put it in perspective like that you really do seem saintly." Fray shrugged.
"This way the passage goes on further." She pushed aside a statue that was in the way and crept into the small passageway revealed behind it..
"How did you know about…"
"Fresh air it was coming in through that." She pointed at the crawlspace. She got down and crept into the dark passage.
They crawled through the cavern on their hands and knees, until it opened up. The stumbled out of the narrow opening into what seemed like a big room with a staircase running right up to the ceiling.
They looked on in awe.
"Oh my God." Andrew exclaimed.
"I think we've hit the jackpot." Fray beamed.
End of Part 1
"Vesuvius" by Magnus Parvus