Chapter 3: The Dark Age

Loud, thumping dance music blared from a portable stereo as Buffy did a step-aerobic routine. Nearby, Giles attempted to read a book—both hands plastered over his ears. He brought one hand down to take a sip of tea.

"Must we have such noise during your calisthenics?" Giles shouted over the music.

"It's not noise, its music," Buffy said.

Giles shook his head. "I know music. Music has notes. This is noise."

"I'm aerobicizing. I must have the beat," Buffy said.

"Wonderful," Giles said. "You work on your muscle tone while my brains dribble out my ears."

"What muscle tone?" Buffy said. "I'm a machine, Giles. I'm doing it because it's part of our normal training routine. You know just something to do since I'm awake twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. It's actually boring pretending to sleep when I don't need to sleep."

"Right," Giles said as the song ended. He watched as Buffy turned off the stereo. "Ah. Very good. The rest is silence."

"I'm on a beach," Buffy said the next morning. "Not an American beach—one of those island beaches where the water is way too blue. It's just before sunset, I'm lying on a towel and Kate Winslet is massaging my feet."

"A girl?" Willow said.

"What?" Buffy said.

"You said Kate Winslet would be massaging your feet."

Buffy thought about it. "Oh my god, I'm a gay robot."

"You're a hot gay robot," Willow said before realizing what she had said. "I think something is wrong with us."

"Why?" Buffy asked.

"Because one … neither of us liked girls before. And two … For you it could be that program you activated. The sexuality one that is influencing you. And me it could be John's memories," Willow said.

"The Sexuality program did not determine who we like, Buffy. We determined who we like. The program only awakened the possibility. Before the program was activated we didn't have the possibility of being sexually attracted to someone."

Buffy nodded as she watched as Cameron's monologue flashed in front of her eyes. Over the course of the last two weeks, Buffy had gotten used to the heads up display always being there and to a degree ignored it. The thing she had not gotten used to, was the machine, Cameron, who was alive inside of her. Basically she shared the body with another person and it freaked her out a little.

"The sexuality program didn't determine who I liked, Will. It just awakened the possibility," Buffy said. "Before there was no possibility for me to be sexually attracted to someone.

"What are you guys talking about?" Xander asked.

"Sexuality," Buffy said as Willow blushed.

"Oh," Xander said as they approached Giles.

"Ah. There you are," Giles said as he fell in step with them.

"Morning," Buffy said.

"Tonight is a very important. There is a transport vehicle is delivering a supply of blood to the hospital," Giles said.

"Aha," Buffy said. "Vampire meals-on-wheels."

"Well, hopefully not. We should meet in front of the hospital at 8:30 sharp. I'll bring the weaponry," Giles said.

"Just bring enough for yourself," Buffy said.

"Yes, right," Giles said as he gave Buffy a stern look. "Don't be late."

"A physical impossibility," Buffy said.

"Right," Giles said as Jenny approached them, smiling.

"Morning, England," Jenny said.

"We must tell Angel soon. That our sexual orientation has switched."

"Hello, Ms... Jenny," Giles said.

"I know," Buffy muttered low enough no one heard her.

"Feel the passion," Willow said.

"Willow, Buffy—"

Willow coughed. "Coughing, not speaking."

"—you two are still on for tomorrow?" Jenny asked as both Buffy and Willow nodded.

"What's tomorrow?" Xander asked.

"I'm reviewing some computer basics with a couple of students who have fallen behind. Willow and Buffy are helping for extra credit," Jenny said.

"Hah! Those poor schlubs. Having to give up their Saturday—" Xander said.

Jenny smiled. "Nine a.m. okay with you, Xander?"

"You've got a bit of schlub on your shoe, there," Buffy said.

"So why are you going to be there? I never saw you as the extra credit type, especially in computers," Xander said.

"Cordelia is going to meet us," Jenny said.

"It's because of what I am now," Buffy said as Xander nodded in understanding.

"Hey, gang, did you hear that? A bonus day of class, plus Cordelia! A little rectal surgery and it would be the best day ever!" Xander said.

Jenny looked to Giles. "Walk me to class?"

"Pleasure," Giles said.

Jenny smiled. "Nice coat," she said as she and Giles head off down the hall just as the bell rang.

"Look at them," Buffy said.

Xander nodded. "A twosome of cuteness."

"Can't you just imagine them getting together?" Willow asked. She looked at Buffy. "I didn't know you were going to help for extra credit, tomorrow."

"I'm pretty much on my way to the honor roll now," Buffy said. "You know because of what I am now. I don't really need the extra credit it's more to pass the time since I don't need to sleep, eat, drink or nothing."

That night Buffy sat at the dining room table with her mother.

"Dawn!" Joyce yelled. "Dinner is ready."

"Coming," Dawn yelled back as she ran through the wall separating the dining room from the hall and stairwell.

Joyce sighed. "Dawn how many times do I have to tell you not to do that?" Ever since she and Giles had talked she had grown steadily more comfortable and had come to accept that her daughter was the Slayer and that someone's stupid idea of a prank had given her youngest daughter the power to walk through solid matter.

The thing that Dawn had found the most fun was to phase through was Buffy and Joyce. Buffy herself had hardly noticed it. But Joyce had felt a slight tingling sensation as Dawn had phased through her. Joyce had quickly put a stop to Dawn phasing through either herself or Buffy.

Dawn sighed. "What use is it to have this power if I can't use it?"

"Dawn," Joyce said. "What happened if someone who didn't know you had this power walked in and saw you running through solid objects?"

"Mom has a point, Dawn," Buffy said. "We can't go revealing stuff to the outside world. If someone found out that we can do stuff other people can't. They might see us as a threat and come take us away from mom."

Dawn nodded. She knew was right that. It was after all one of the reasons why their mother still didn't know that Buffy was a Terminator. "Sorry," she said.

"Maybe we should see if there is something she could do to be helpful?"

Buffy sighed internally at Cameron's statement. Dawn was only eleven years old, and she didn't want to put her little sister in harms way.

"Maybe she could help research. Not the physical aspects. Though her learning self-defense could help her regardless."

Buffy nodded she knew Cameron had a point. Dawn was the most vulnerable because she was a child who was just entering her teenage years. At the very least she knew Dawn should at least learn self-defense. "Mom, I've been thinking. After school what if Dawn joined me for my training regime at the high school. It might be a good if she learned self-defense."

Joyce thought about it for a moment and then nodded. "That actually sounds like a good idea, Buffy. Not only because of what you face but the world beyond Sunnydale is not exactly safe. You can tell Mr. Giles that he has my permission to train Dawn in some self-defense techniques."

"Okay," Buffy said. "Speaking of which. I should be getting over to the hospital. I'm supposed to meet him there."

"Be safe," Joyce said as Buffy nodded.

Buffy had left for the hospital fifteen minutes later. She waited for Giles to come as she repeatedly checked the internal chronometer. After an hour of waiting Cameron spoke up.

"I checked the other you's memories. He's not coming."

"Thanks, Cameron," Buffy said.

"You're welcome, Buffy."

Just then headlights washed across Buffy's face as she watched a van with Medical Transport stenciled on the side pulled to a stop at the loading dock.

The driver got out and moved to a couple of interns, handing one of them a clipboard to sign. The other intern hefted a large ice chest out of the van as the driver, clipboard in hand got back in his van and drove off.

"Is it normal for doctor's to accept deliveries?"

Buffy thought about what Cameron had said and shook her head. "No." She watched as the interns moved past the back door picking up their pace, heading down the side of the building.

Buffy moved into action as her arm morphed into the flame thrower. She vaulted off the wall closing the gap.

One of the Interns ripped off his stethoscope and pulled a blood bag out of the ice chest the other one carried. Buffy could see they're heading toward a car parked nearby.

"There's another one."

"I see him," Buffy muttered as the driver of the car got out.

"Hey, no sampling the product," the driver said.

The intern ignored the driver as he bit into the bag. The other intern growled at him.

Then a shadowy figure leapt on the first intern from behind.

Buffy was about to fire her flame thrower when she recognized the shadowy figure. "Angel!"

"Buffy! Look out!" Angel shouted.

The driver rammed shoulder-first into Buffy, startled that she didn't move. Then he stumbled back as she did a full on exorcist twist of her head as the rest of her body turned to face the driver as well. She raised her arm and fired her flame thrower. The driver caught fire and dusted.

The intern dove for Buffy as she turned and fired her flame thrower, dusting him. The other intern came at Angel who used his velocity to whip him around and send him towards Buffy.

"Incoming!" Angel said as Buffy fired her flame thrower dusting the other intern.

Angel looked shocked as Buffy's arm morphed back to normal. "How?"

Buffy sighed. "Let's drop that off so we can go someplace and talk."

They quickly dropped off the delivery of blood and made a quick excuse on why they had it. Then they headed for Angel's apartment where Buffy tried to explain the events of Halloween. "On Halloween things changed for me. Willow had talked me into doing a theme with her. So we got matching costumes. Her costume was supposed to be this kid from this television show that would grow up to become the person who would save the human race from extinction at the hands of a machine intelligence we had created. My costume was of a robot from the show. This guy cast a spell transforming everyone into their costumes. By the end of the night Giles had ended the spell. Most people reverted back. Some did not. My sister went as a ghost and can now walk through walls. Willow and Xander, they still have the memories. Me I didn't become human again."

"So you're some kind of robot now?" Angel said.

"More or less," Buffy said.

"And you have weapons you can use for Slaying?" Angel asked.

"Yes," Buffy said. "You saw one of them. I have many more. Most of them not really good for slaying though."

"Tell him."

"Cameron," Buffy muttered.

"Who's Cameron?" Angel asked.

"The ghost in the machine," Buffy said.

"The what?" Angel asked.

"I'm not alone in here," Buffy said tapping the side of her head. "When I changed back Cameron didn't go away. Since I'm a machine now that meant her personality got stored and eventually started communicating with me."

"Oh," Angel said.

"Tell him."

"I will, Cameron. But let me do it in my own way," Buffy said as Angel looked at her. "Sorry. She's getting a little impatient. Angel there is something I need to tell you. About me and about your curse."

"What about you and my curse?" Angel asked.

"First off the curse," Buffy said. "It has a clause in it. If you have one moment of true happiness, your soul goes away. I know this because when I became a machine I received memories, future memories of an alternate Buffy. That Buffy had sex with your alternate and he lost his soul."

"Oh," Angel said. "Thank you for telling me."

"You're welcome," Buffy said. "That said we don't have to worry about my giving you your one moment of true happiness. I'm no longer in love with you. Since becoming a machine I found out that I no longer like boys in that way but girls."

"I see," Angel said. "Maybe then it's time I think about moving on."

"You don't have to," Buffy said. "We can still work together."

"With what you've become you no longer need me," Angel said.

"If that's what you feel you have to do," Buffy said. "I understand. If you ever need help."

"I'll call," Angel said. "Once I'm settled somewhere I will let you know how to reach me in case you have to do the same."

"Thanks," Buffy said. "I'm going to go check on Giles. He was supposed to meet me tonight. He didn't."

As Buffy walked to Giles apartment building. She thought about Angel and hoped he would be alright. She tried letting him down easy but she wasn't sure it had worked out alright. She spotted Giles apartment building ahead and noted as she entered it that his car was parked outside. She moved down the hall to Giles door as her Terminator enhanced hearing picked up Giles voice coming through the door.

"Are you certain she didn't leave a forwarding number? I've been on the phone for hours, this is a matter of life and –"

Buffy knocked on the door. She listened as footsteps approached and Giles opened the door a crack. He stared out at her. She saw that he was unshaven and looked a good deal more rumpled than she'd ever seen him.

"Buffy. It's late, are you all right?" Giles said.

"Kind of a rhetorical question isn't it," Buffy said.

"Right," Giles said.

"Anyways I was going to ask you the same thing," Buffy said.

Giles nodded. "Yes, fine. I'm afraid I'm rather busy. I'll see you Monday at school –" He tried to shut the door.

Buffy put her hand out and with a little force held the door open. "Giles, did you forget about the hospital? Vampires? Bags of blood in handy carry out packets?"

"Oh. Are you all right? Were you hurt?" Giles said.

"No," Buffy said. "Remember I'm harder to kill now. What's wrong?"

Giles shook his head. "Nothing. Nothing's wrong, I'm in the middle of an extremely important matter and I'm sorry but I'm just going to have to say good night now."

"Ask him about Eyghon."

"What's Eyghon?" Buffy asked as Giles stopped short.

"Tell him it's here. Tell him it's killed Deirdre."

"It's here," Buffy said. "It's killed Deirdre. Who's Deirdre?"

"A friend," Giles said. "This is a private matter. I ask that you let me handle it."

"Tell him that it's just him and Ethan now."

"The guy at the costume shop?" Buffy asked.

"What?" Giles said.

"Yes."

"It's just you and Ethan now," Buffy said. "Which by the way, why didn't you tell me you knew the guy from the costume shop."

"We're old friends," Giles said. He sighed. "Come in."

Buffy followed Giles into his apartment closing the door behind her.

Giles moved to the phone, "Sorry to keep you waiting. Thank you for your time." He turned to Buffy as he hung the phone. "I was studying history at Oxford and of course the occult by night. I hated it. The boring grind of school, the pressure of my destiny. So I dropped out. I went to London, fell in with the worst crowd that would have me. We practiced magicks. Small stuff, for pleasure or gain. And then Ethan and I discovered something a little bigger. We put one of us into a deep sleep and the others would summon him. It was an extraordinary high."

"So you did the mystical equivalent of cocaine or something," Buffy said.

"More or less," Giles said. "God, we were fools. One of us, Randall, he lost control. Eyghon took him whole. We tried to exorcise the demon from Randall, but it killed him. We killed him. We thought we were free of the demon after that."

Buffy nodded. "Tell me what you know, please, Giles. Don't shut me out."

Giles sighed. "Eyghon can only exist in this reality by possessing an unconscious host. The possession was always temporary as we would always observe the proper rituals. If the proper rituals had not been observed the possession would have become permanent, and Eyghon would have been born from within the host. Once called, Eyghon can also take possession of the dead, but its demonic energy soon disintegrates the host and it must jump to the nearest dead or unconscious person to continue living."

"How do we kill it?" Buffy asked.

"I do not know," Giles said.

"Okay. You do some research. Willow and I will told Ms. Calendar we'd help out in the morning with her computer tutorial. I'll swing by afterwards to check in," Buffy said.

Giles nodded. "Alright," he said as Buffy stood to leave. "And Buffy, thank you."

"You're welcome Giles," Buffy said.

The next morning Buffy strode into the computer classroom at Sunnydale High. "Sorry, I'm late," she said.

"It's alright, Buffy," Jenny said. "All right, the first thing we want to do is ..."

Just then they heard a crash come from the library and Buffy ran out of the classroom and into the library as a man tried to ran past her. She grabbed him by the shirt collar yanking him off his feet. She turned and looked into his face. "You. I should just let Eyghon have you. It's your fault I'm no longer human. What are you doing here?"

"Snooping around," Ethan said.

"Honesty. Nice touch," Buffy remarked.

Ethan smiled. "It's one of my virtues. Not really."

Just then Willow, Xander, Cordelia and Jenny came into the library.

"Hold him," Buffy said as she shoved Ethan toward Xander who grabbed him. Buffy moved to Giles phone and dialed. "Giles its Buffy. I've got Ethan here. What do you want me to do with him?"

"He's there with you?" Giles asked. "Buffy, listen to me. You're in great danger with Ethan there. I want you to put down the phone and get out of the library as quickly as possible."

"Is it because of Eyghon?" Buffy asked.

"Yes," Giles said. "It will likely go through you and anyone around you to get at him."

Suddenly someone crashed through the window in Giles' office as glass shattered and flew outwards. The man went for Ethan as Buffy put herself between Ethan and the man.

Buffy tried to roundhouse kicked the man, but it didn't seem to have much effect on him as he turned his wrath on her. She let the man back her towards the book cage. The man lunged at her as she ducked under his big arms and booted him into the cage, slamming the door and locking it behind him.

"I'm not getting close enough to feel his pulse, but I've gotta say he looks pretty dead," Willow said.

Xander nodded. "Except for the walking around and attacking Buffy part."

"He's dead," Ethan said. "Sorry, Philip. Really I am."

"You know him?" Buffy asked.

Ethan nodded. "Knew him."

"Hey, you don't speak until we tell you to speak," Cordelia said.

"Uh, Cordelia, I did tell him to speak," Buffy said as Giles rushed in.

"Is everyone all right?" Giles asked.

"We're okay," Jenny said.

"Dead guy there interrupted our tutorial," Xander said as he looked at Philip. "Been meaning to thank you for that."

Philip made a terrible sound in his throat as Xander took a giant step back.

Giles looked at Ethan, frowning. "I thought I told you to leave town."

"You did. I didn't. Shop's lease is paid through the end of the month," Giles said.

Cordelia turned to Xander. "Why'd he call him Ripper?"

Giles grabbed Ethan, roughly. "You should have left when I told you!"

"Oh," Cordelia said.

"You've put these people in danger. These are people I care about," Giles said.

Again Cordelia turned to Xander. "Wow, even me?"

Xander gave a quick shake of his head.

"If you care so much about them why didn't you leave town. I know you've been having the dreams, I have, we both know what's coming," Ethan said.

Giles glared at Ethan, and then let him go.

"Did you find anything on how to kill it?" Buffy asked.

"No," Giles said as Philip kicked open the cage door.

Philip hurled Jenny into a wall, causing her to hit her hand and fall to the ground unconscious.

"Jenny!" Giles said.

Ethan looked truly frightened of Philip and ran for the door. "Nooo!"

Willow and Cordelia scramble out of the way as Buffy punched and kicked Philip.

Xander slid a book cart behind Philip as Buffy stomped Philip into it.

Philip tripped back over the book cart and landed on the floor. As he stood he started to shake before he dissolved into goo.

"That's something you don't see every day," Willow said.

"Move Ms. Calendar. NOW! Before the goo gets to her."

"Giles, move Ms. Calendar," Buffy said as he looked up at her. "Before the goo can get to her."

Giles looked at the goo and quickly moved Jenny away from it.

"Everyone stay back," Buffy said as she morphed her arm into the flame thrower. "Xander get the fire extinguisher. I'm going to burn this stuff up."

Xander nodded and ran to grab a fire extinguisher. He came back ready as Buffy fired her flame thrower at the goo burning it up. He used the fire extinguisher then to put out the fire.

"That hopefully is the end of Eyghon," Buffy said as she morphed her arm back to normal. "And will someone explain what happened on Halloween to Cordelia. Her jaw is hanging open."

"I'll do it," Xander said as he led Cordelia from the room.

"Jenny?" Giles said as she began to come to.

"Ow..." Jenny said holding her hand to her head.

"Careful, careful. Can you stand?" Giles said.

"I think so," Jenny said as Giles helped her to her feet. "Here, lean on me." Jenny nodded as she leaned into Giles. "It'll be all right..."

"Promise?" Jenny asked.

"I promise," Giles said.

Jenny relaxed a little. "I believe you."

Giles looked at Buffy. "We'll talk on Monday."

"Okay," Buffy said.

Monday morning Xander, Buffy, and Willow walked toward Sunnydale High

"There is something I need to tell you guys," Buffy said. "You know how you John and Kyle disappeared when the spell ended for you guys?" Xander and Willow nodded. "For me Cameron didn't disappear."

"Cameron?" Xander asked. "Who's Cameron."

"The Terminator," Buffy said. "Since I'm a machine, Cameron became just another program when I took control."

"She became a ghost in the machine," Willow said.

"Exactly," Buffy said. "I can talk to her. She helped me to realize a few things. And this will make Xander happy. I'm no longer in love with Angel. In fact he's leaving town."

Xander smiled and did a small dance for joy.

Willow nodded as she looked at Buffy. She understood what Buffy was saying. Had been saying the day they were playing Anywhere But Here. She wasn't sure if it was John's memories or what, but when she looked at Xander she no longer had the crush on him that she had held since they were kids. When she looked at Buffy though …

They spotted Giles and Buffy excused herself from her friends as she walked over to her Watcher.

"Hello, Buffy," Giles said. "I was thinking we can do away with your training routine. You don't really need it anymore. Not since Halloween."

Buffy smiled. "I may not but Dawn does. Mom and I would like Dawn to learn self-defense. Not to deal with vampires or demons but to defend herself and hopefully get away if she were attacked."

Giles nodded. "That sounds like a good idea. I could recommend several trainers."

"We'd like you to do it, personally," Buffy said.

"Alright," Giles said. "We'll do it after school during your normal afternoon sessions."

"Okay," Buffy said. "One other thing. Angel's leaving town, or already left. The reasons are not important. He told me that Spike's sire, Drusilla has been hanging around town since I dusted Spike."

Giles nodded. "When we learned about Spike I did some research. It was believed Drusilla was killed in Prague by an angry mob. But if she wasn't, she may be weak and trying to recuperate. It's doubtful she will prove much of a threat."