It had taken seven hours in total for Wesley to create the spell that would send Faith and Spike to the past. He'd toiled through the night with Illyria by his side until the sun had risen above the buildings. After fond farewells and childish insults, on Spike's part, Wesley had ripped open the portal with a lot of cursing and sweating. It was harder to create time portals than the films led people to believe apparently. So they stepped through the opening and everything changed. The step was such a simple action, a motion that people completed hundreds of times during a day. They simply moved forward and the world shifted. Everything else fell away around Faith as she became intensely focused on herself, all her hopes, dreams and fears were laid bare before her. She saw what she was, what she had now become and what she could be in the future. She was walking through time but her awareness was confined to her own personal being. She glanced over at Spike beside her and saw the look on his face that said he was experiencing a similar epiphany. A vague thought passed through her mind about selling these trips as counselling.

Then the world shifted again. It started as a small incline rising behind them. The non-existent floor beneath their feet was lifting gradually, higher and higher until they were skidding down the slope on their heels and fighting for grip. Eventually, with nothing to hold on to, they couldn't stand anymore and they fell forward into the abyss. They dropped into darkness, a deep well of nothingness. Faith could not think or feel, she could only embrace the nothing. For the first time in days she was at peace but she could not recognise the sensation because of the nothingness preventing her from understanding or even feeling emotion. They were flying through time, falling further and further into history.

They hit the ground with a thud. It was enough to knock the wind from both of them and they lay face down groaning and clutching at their bodies. Faith peered around her, confusion and panic instantly setting in. From what she could see they definitely weren't in Camelot, unless the city was on the set of a sci-fi movie. The room they'd landed in reminded her of the stories Gunn had told her about the White Room. It was an expanse of glistening pearl on every surface. The walls, the floor and even the ceiling shone with a bright white brilliance. She felt the petulant urge to smudge dirt on the floor and see what happened. She pushed herself up to standing and reached down to help Spike do the same. They shared a look of concern before turning to gaze around the empty room.

"You guys weren't who I'd have liked to see but you'll do."

The voice seemed to echo around the room, a feminine voice that tugged at Faith's memory. They spun round trying to find the source before their eyes were drawn to the wall opposite them. It was bending and shifting at one spot, bursting outwards until it formed the shape of a person. As it moved forward, separating from the wall it grew more solid and features began forming until it became the recognisable shape of a woman.

"Cordelia Chase. Heard you'd crossed over, pet." Spike's acknowledgement snapped Faith out of her state of shock. She stared at Cordelia's smiling face, wondering if she was going to understand what the hell was going on.

"I did. But the Powers that Be weren't finished with me so here I am." She held up her hands and waved at their surroundings.

"Where exactly is here?"

"Hi Faith. Nice to see you too." Faith's rolled her eyes at her sarcasm before Cordelia continued speaking. "We're in a between place. A bridge between time, space, dimensions, you name it. Every road to anywhere crosses here. This was the only place I could talk to you."

"Why do you want to talk to us? What does it matter to you?" Faith's naturally suspicious personality couldn't allow her to relax, despite her secret pleasure at seeing her old frenemy.

"It's a long story. To explain I need to start at the beginning... or the end, whichever way you look at it. See, when I died on Earth I should have passed over to wherever the hell an ex-prophet would go. But the Powers that Be offered me a choice. I could go to the afterlife and eventually be reborn. OR I could fulfil the destiny I should have had before that bitch Jasmine screwed with it. I was supposed to become a higher being, just not in the way that I did. So I chose the latter option."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"I'm getting to it! Jeez! Anyway, I became a higher being and I've been working with the Powers on things I can't discuss with you. Let's just say I've been guiding and helping things around the world. I've even managed to persuade the Powers to start taking a more active role in helping their Champions. I've been down there and seen their treatment first hand and I convinced them that their service was shitty."

"Get to the point, Cordy." She threw a scowl Faith's way before she returned to the original topic.

"Something's happening in Camelot. Something has been jumping dimensions and destroying history. The only thing we know about it is that it seems to gain power from ending particular time lines and feeding off the energy of destinies unfulfilled."

"So you think this thing is headed to Camelot, to steal the destiny of King Arthur?"

"It's already in Camelot. That's why we sent Dawn there."

An expression of outrage swept across Faith's face and from Spike's sudden tenseness she guessed he would be wearing a similar expression.

"YOU sent her there? Why? How?"

Cordelia's eyes showed a fountain of sorrow as she looked at Faith.

"There was nothing I could do about the bomb, to save them. It was a human consequence and no matter how much I screamed and fought, they wouldn't let me change it. But Dawn survived, thanks to Willow's spell tapping into the energy of the Key. I was able to manipulate things so she would end up in Camelot. They're unprepared for what they could be facing there. They need Dawn's help and I knew you would follow her. That's why I helped Wesley. He was doing okay by himself but I just gave him that extra nudge."

"You're playing with us, with humanity. We're just pawns to you now huh? Being a higher being changed you, love." Spike's comment was dripping with disgust and Cordelia's eyes flashed with anger.

"I'm trying to help! I'm doing whatever I can to keep people safe!"

"Then you should have saved them, saved Buffy! And you should have saved Gunn. And you should have saved Fred! She was your friend and her soul got destroyed because you couldn't 'help' us save her."

"I did save her, you peroxide jack-ass!" This admission stunned everyone into silence. Tempers were still flaring but confusion was on the minds of the time travellers until Cordelia explained. "Fred's soul should have been destroyed when Illyria took over her body. I wasn't in time to stop the whole process from happening, I was still in transition. But as soon as I came out, I tried to. But she was too far along. So instead I saved her soul. At the exact point Illyria's essence took over and Fred's soul should have burned I took it and kept it safe. I made sure it was reborn into a nice, happy life that was quiet and peaceful, just like she deserved. That's why Illyria has so much trouble containing the Fred persona. Her body knows that its rightful owner is still out there somewhere and its fighting for control. It's Illyria's penance for what she did."

Faith couldn't help but be pleased that Fred had survived in some form. She'd only known the girl for a short time but she had a unique sense of goodness that Faith had liked. Spike had been closer to her and the relief on his face told her he was more affected by this news.

"Thank you. She does deserve some peace."

Spike's gratitude made Cordelia smile softly and she nodded her acknowledgment.

"So what happens now? We go to Camelot, save Dawn, stop this thing then come home." Faith questioned the other woman, feeling restless in this strange place.

"That's up to you. I can send you forward or I can send you back. The choice is yours."

Faith and Spike looked at each other and that one glance was enough.

"We started this journey for a reason and we're gonna finish it for the same reason. Saving history is just a bonus."

"Let's do this." Faith added her confirmation to Spike's, making Cordelia grin.

"Who'd have thought it would be you two? William the Bloody and the Rogue Slayer becoming Champions for the Powers that Be. This is a momentous occasion, I feel like there should be fireworks or something."

"Yeah yeah, just do what you've got to do and send us on our way."

"Not just yet. You are now Champions, THE Champions actually. You deserve gifts to reflect that."

"Can I have a Gameboy? I loved those when they first came out."

"No Spike, not that kind of gift."

With no other explanation Cordelia reached in to a fold in the long, white flowing robe she was wearing and pulled out a ball of sunshine. That was the only thing Faith could think to describe what was glowing in her hand. It shimmered and moved as if it was alive, shining beams of light that flickered across the room. They were too busy being mesmerised to register Cordelia's movements until she'd already thrown the ball at Spike. It hit him in the chest and exploded bathing him in an intense golden glow as he screamed in pain.

"Spike!" Faith called out and moved forward towards him but her motions were halted when the light disappeared and a panting Spike was left un-glowing.

"What the bloody hell was that?" He demanded.

"You are now the only vampire in existence with the power to walk in the sun. To be totally honest, I've immunised you with a spark of sunlight so that during the day it won't harm you."

"Seriously? I'm a day walker?" Cordelia nodded, causing Spike to break out into a goofy grin. "Check it out Faith, I'm Blade!"

Faith rolled her eyes before tensing as Cordelia turned to her. She watched her movements warily.

"Relax. I'm not going to throw anything at you. I just want to bless the Scythe." Cordelia held out her hand and Faith was astonished to feel the weapon pulled from her grip and watched as it sailed into Cordelia's outstretched palm. Her fingers closed around its handle, the weapon shone with white light before it disappeared, returned to Faith's grip. She stared open mouthed between the Scythe and Cordelia.

"All done. Now you have a weapon no other Slayer has ever had. Not only is the Scythe powerful in itself but it's now a conduit to other slayers. All the warriors that have gone before and all that are yet to be, their power is stored within the Scythe. In times of great need you can now tap into that power."

"So I'll be a super-slayer?"

Cordelia nodded. Super-Slayer. Huh. The thought scared Faith. She didn't cope well with power.

"So are you ready to go?" Faith looked over at Spike who nodded in response to Cordelia's question. "Then your journey waits. The door you want is over there." She pointed at the large black door that had appeared in the wall behind them. "Good luck guys. I'll be watching."

With that she turned to walk away, already fading around the edges as she moved towards the wall she had come from.

"Wait!" Faith's exclamation made her pause and peer at them over her shoulder. "He still loves you. Even now. He misses you."

Cordelia knew who Faith was talking about and tears sprang into her eyes. She brushed away the tear that fell onto her cheek and smiled.

"Thank you."

Then she was gone and they were left alone to face their journey. They strode up to the door and flung it open. Darkness loomed in the doorway and they both shared an uncertain glance before determination propelled them forward. With a deep breath (in Faith's case) they leapt through the doorway and were once again falling into the abyss of time.