A/N: You might call me a bit of a cynic, or maybe pessimist is the right word. I don't really believe that turning to the stars will unite all humanity, like you see in the old Star Trek series and to a certain extent also in the Stargate Atlantis thing. I just don't believe people are that magnanimous.
Given the choice of going off with a bunch of strangers or a bunch of people you know and share your beliefs with well I am going to bet on going with the latter. You like what you know. So yeah, conflicts on Earth, probably just magnified in space. And that's my piece of philosophy for the day. One last thing though, history has a way of repeating itself.
For I dipped into the Future, far as human eye could see; saw the vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be. - Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 1842
Chapter Three: Fuego de los Cielos
"This isn't right." Buffy muttered to herself, plucking at one of her long and trailing sleeves. She looked ridiculous. The organisers of this little 'lets close the door after the horse has bolted' fiesta had insisted on very elaborate gowns, with long wispy sleeves and trains, hoping that would impede movement enough people would think twice about attacking anybody. As if. She was confident in herself and her companions that if it came down to it not even the prospect of having to strip their clothes and fight in the nude would stop them from doing their duty.
The real reason for her discomfort however was another. After years of silence, so long in fact that she had initially distrusted the feeling, her spideysense was tingling. With a vengeance. Something or somebody in the audience was not what he or she claimed to be. Restlessly she scratched the back of her head, in a lame effort to get the hair there to calm down and lay flat.
"What is the matter, Mistress Buffy?" One of her companions, a tall female with an almost expressionless face that belied the emotions Buffy knew roiled beneath, had spoken.
"Don't call me that, Brianna. You know it annoys me." Buffy sniped, already cursing herself for letting her tension out on somebody she considered a close friend. Well as close as you could get, considering that when Brianna was dead and gone she would still be merrily going on her way. Immortality sucked.
"This whole thing is a farce anyway." She continued, waving a slim hand at the assembly below them. "Those that started this whole mess aren't here anyway, long dead, one and all. And the planet they are now putting up on charges for everything wasn't even involved in the first few battles." Having based her whole life around the simple maxim about what was right and what wasn't, this offended her fine sense of justice to no end. Haven was simply another little planet in a big war. At least at first. Then somehow they had managed to swing their way around more and more power until the other planets realised that if they wanted to stop this one planet from completing what they all had been trying one way or another then they would have to give up their petty squabbles and band together. And they had won, barely. The Great Coalition had prevailed. And now they were sitting trial over Haven, trying to decide what to do with the little planet that had almost defeated them all.
"They have to leave them something." Buffy muttered to herself, lost once more in memories of long ago history lessons only she remembered.
"What do you mean?" Brianna asked, the 'mistress' hanging unspoken in the air.
"They have to leave them their pride." Buffy answered distractedly. "You mustn't bend defeated foes too low, lest they break and try all over again a generation later. If they leave them their pride, Haven will be more likely to accede to our decisions. If we break them here and today, they will return in a generation or two to exact their vengeance. The only way to stop the cycle is to make sure the defeat does not smart too much. For all that he is your enemy, either destroy them completely, man, woman and child or leave them in a position in which they can still look you in the eye."
Deep inside Buffy wished she could remember more from those long ago hours dreamt away in history lessons. She had faint ideas about the Weimar Republic, but couldn't quite place why that thought seemed apt for this trial. While she was still trying to lay her metaphorical finger on what was tickling her senses, she watched proceedings below. Watched as the so called Coalition for Freedom stripped away every one of Haven's freedoms. They took away their spaceships. They told them to disband their armed forces. To give back all weapons on the planet, which would leave them defenceless against all attackers. Told them there would be 'advisors' to keep an eye on things. And finally brought out the clincher. Haven would be forced to pay reparations to all planets afflicted by the war. For the next 120 standard years.
A deep sigh left Buffy's lips. It was even worse than she had feared. Haven hadn't just been broken, it had been humiliated. Down below the representatives of Haven's government signed the charter laid before them with stony faces, the fiery need for revenge already burning deep within them, clear for anybody to see who wished to do so. Buffy and Brianna who cared enough to see it. It burned the strongest perhaps in a young man standing slightly behind and to the left of the former admiral of the Haven fleet. Barely out of his twenties, he already had his face under full control, though his eyes gave the game away.
"Who's that?" Buffy asked Brianna.
Her companion was silent for a moment, then answered. "The son of the former president. His father was killed in the first wave of counter attacks. He is too young to hold office, but he serves as a aide-de-campe in the navy. Assistant to the Lord Marshall I believe. Not much is known about him. They say he will be one to watch."
Buffy shivered. The tone held too much gravity in it. And her spideysense was positively singing whenever she glanced over at the young man, who already held such hate in his soul. Somebody like that was capable of anything.
"We will have to keep an eye on that one." she said. Brianna merely nodded, knowing Buffy meant herself.
"It is possible that the Coalition would not look askance at a representative of the Furyan race asking for the honour of being one of Haven's new advisors." She stated blankly, the corner of her mouth twitching as Buffy caught on to her thoughts and let loose a delighted laugh that rang through the assembly and brought the attention of the young aide-de-campe squarely to them. Buffy's laughter swiftly died, when she noticed this, for the young man's face seemed to tighten even more, hate clearly evident now for all to see. She rubbed suddenly cold arms. The last time she had seen a look like that Angelus had been the one sporting it. An odd mixture of want and lust and the homicidal need to smear her insides over the sky.
"We will definitely be keeping an eye on him." She affirmed once more.
"Mistress Buffy! Mistress Buffy!" The young boy was breathless by the time he finally managed to find who he was looking for. He stopped in midstep when he saw what she was doing, falling over with an indignant squeak. Buffy was practising her katas in the midmorning sun, deliberately slow for the audience of young women and men watching her. Each move was a study in economy, not a single molecule of energy wasted, landing exactly where it should. But then she had had a long time to perfect her arts. With a final graceful punch, that would have knocked a man's head clean off, she finished.
"And that is how it is done. Now you do it." Smirking, she ignored the chorus of groans this statement provoked and turned her attention to the little page bouncing from foot to foot, eager to execute his duty.
"What's up Halen?"
The boy flushed, pleased that the great Mistress Buffy remembered his name. "The council asks if you could kindly come by after training. They have news of Haven." His chest swelled, having successfully completed his mission. Buffy reached out a hand and ruffled his hair, suppressing a smile when the boy grimaced and patted the hair back into place.
"You run along and tell them I will be by in about an hour. Just have to finish harassing my poor students."
She watched with a genuine smile as Halen ran off as fast as his legs could carry him. Then she turned back to her students an almost evil grin in place. "Well, you know what that means. We will have to get an hour and a half of lessons into an hour." Another chorus of good-natured groans was the only answer she got. Inside though she wondered if her holiday was over. Haven had seemed stable when she left. Left to return here to the home of her heart and the people she considered her family.
Buffy finished tying up her hair just as she walked into the great hall. The entire council was already in place, their sombre expressions boding no good news.
"What's the sitch?" The council, used to their patron's often strange use of language, turned as one to look at their speaker, De'Rhen.
"Buffy, we have received both good news and slightly alarming news."
"Bad news first then. At least that way we will have something to look forward to."
"We have just received word, that Haven has elected a new Lord Marshall."
"I thought that position didn't exist anymore seeing as they have no navy to speak of." Buffy frowned slightly, already having a good idea where this was going.
"They don't. However, the position has changed somewhat and the title is now used for the lifetime president of Haven. I believe you know him. Met him at the Coalition."
Now Buffy really had a bad feeling. "The son of the old president is now lifetime president? That doesn't sound good."
"No it doesn't. He has also combined all legislative and executive powers in his position."
"That sounds even worse. So do we know if he is planning any wars?"
De'Rhen shook her head. "No the new Lord Marshall insists that he is simply trying to make Haven a safe place, able to take it's rightful place in the Coalition."
"Where have I heard that before?" Buffy asked. "I mean safe for who? And what exactly is this rightful position?"
"That we do not know."
"Well, we will have to keep an even closer eye on him. I don't want the invasion of Poland to happen all over again."
"The good news is that the Coalition have relieved you of your duty as an advisor on Haven. They thank you for your exemplary duty and the Lord Marshall himself was kind enough to extend his thanks for your tireless efforts to better the lot of his people and begs you to accept this humble token of their gratitude." She briefly held up a velvet box for Buffy to be blinded by, for inside lay a medal with more precious stones set into it than any person with the slightest amount of fashion sense would ever consider wearing. Buffy also did not miss the slight tinge of irony in De'Rhen's voice. She was much too good a politician to be obvious about it, but Buffy had known her for a long time now and was more than able to read her like a book.
Yet, even as she registered these thoughts, the slayer in her insisted that Haven still posed a threat and that somebody had better keep an eye on them. She shrugged the feeling off, she was free. Free to do whatever she liked and it had been too long since she had seen Dawn.
The following decades were a time of peace for Buffy and the known universe. She spent those years with her sister on New Mecca. In the centuries they had known each other Buffy and her sister had come far beyond mere sisters. They had had to. Their relationship in its early years had been too fraught with tension, life and death situations, a sister trying to be a mother when she was barely grown up herself. The younger sister resenting the perceived replacement of that beloved mother figure.
It had taken a long time for them to find a balance in their lives, for Buffy to give up trying to mother her sister and simply be there. Of course the first time Dawn practically single-handedly organised the averting of an apocalypse it had been hard for Buffy to argue that she was too young for their lifestyle.
Many tears and tantrums had followed over the decades, but in the end they had managed. Then again they practically had eternity to figure it out and knowing that you would live for an unknown length of time put a couple of decades spent not talking to each other into perspective.
And now Buffy and Dawn knew each other for what they really were, slayer and sorceress, sisters and above all best friends. Tara would have been proud.
"So, what's the plan?" Dawn asked languidly, one arm trailing over the side of the boat, her fingers skimming the surface of the water.
Buffy looked at her from her position at the stern of the boat. She let her head fall back against the gang whale and sighed. "I have no plans. No plans at all. Just us two and sun, sand and surf."
Dawn smiled. "Bit far from the sand, sis."
"You know what I mean. These last years have been so relaxing. No fighting, no stupid squabbling so-called advisors more intent on serving themselves than trying to sort out problems. It's nice you know." She trailed off, brow scrunching in thought.
"But?" Dawn asked.
"What do you mean but?"
"Well, it just sounded like there was a but. The but hung unspoken in the air. Yup. There was a definite flavour of butness in the air." Even after countless years away from the country of her birth, Dawn still affected the mannerisms of the town she had grown up in, although more with her sister than with her people.
"I can't put my finger on it Dawnie." Buffy complained. "It is like I know there is something coming but I can't put my finger on it. If we were still in Sunnydale I would say apocalypse season is coming."
"Well, maybe I can help you with that. Message came for you yesterday." Dawn stated nonchalantly, skilfully ignoring her sister's blazing glare. "De'Rhen sends her greetings and would like me to tell you that the Lord Marshall of Haven died in a freak accident. His successor has already been sworn in. I believe she said he was a member of the Liberal party."
"And you only tell me this now. Dawn, I should.."
"What? Call me selfish, but I knew that as soon as you heard you would be off once more. And I wanted to keep you here for a while. What's one day more or less?" She sent an innocent look her sister's way, a hopeful smile tingeing her lips.
Buffy huffed. "How am I supposed to stay mad, when you pull that." She shook her head, then unceremoniously dumped her aggravating sibling into the lake they were on. "There I feel much better now."
De'Rhen had aged so much, Buffy mused as she shared a civilised cup of chai with one of her best friends. It saddened her to see that she would loose said friend before very much longer. De'Rhen had lived a long and happy life, fulfilling many ambitions, raising a large family with many grandchildren and great-grandchildren to spoil. Buffy sometimes envied her with all she had in her. But she had long gotten past all that, had had to if she didn't want to let the grief consume her, tainting all her relationships.
"That is the fourth lord marshal now, I believe." De'Rhen stated, only the slightest hint of age evident in her voice.
Knowing no response was needed, Buffy kept silent, another talent learnt the hard way over the years.
"Haven has come far in the decades since the war. I heard that they now dominate the market where new technology is concerned."
"Yes, although we have never relied too much on gadgets, thank goodness." Buffy interjected.
"This new marshal, he is the son of his predecessor?"
"Yes, looks like they have got the whole monarchy thing going for them. Without you know actually saying that they have a monarchy thing going for them." Absently Buffy sipped her chai, relishing the subtle hints of spice among the creamy taste of the milk. It was as close to coffee as they could get.
"I believe you are right. It does have elements of absolute monarchy. I have heard rumours."
Buffy stilled. De'Rhen never passed on rumours unless they had been verified and counter-verified countless times. "Rumours about what, my friend?"
"Rumours that on the borders to the wild lands of Haven a new mentality is emerging. A mentality some people would consider worrying."
The slayer merely raised an eyebrow knowing full well that De'Rhen would get to her point when she was good and ready.
"The borderlanders are adopting the credo 'You keep what you kill'."
Buffy paled, memories from long before assaulting her, of another slayer, dark and damaged. Compelling eyes above pouty blood-red lips as she intoned her credo to the world.
"Want. Take. Have." She whispered the words, chills running along her spine.
"I believe it could be somewhat paraphrased that way," her companion stated, startling Buffy, who hadn't realised vocalising her words.
"This is indeed a worrying development."
"And yet there is nothing you can do, committed as you are to exploring the newly settled areas of space. There are rumours as you know of green men with horns on some of those planets. It would not be, how do you say it? Ah, it would not be of the good, if after years humanity once again had contact with the daemons."
Buffy frowned, torn between amusement at her old friend's pronunciation of the word demon and the worry that if she left on this planned trip much worse things would happen.
The tiny part of her that was still a somewhat shallow valley girl made known that it was a good thing the whole immortality deal stopped her from getting wrinkles, because with the amount of frowning she had done over her worries she would be looking like a prune by then.