Chapter IV

Buffy really hated hospitals. Now, four of her friends were patients. Xander was out of the ICU and no longer bed-ridden. He was visiting Faith and Willow alternately. The former was still unconscious; the latter was in and out, having received a blood transfusion after last night.

Kennedy was in the ICU. She had a concussion, major internal bleeding, and her right arm was rendered useless, due to three gaping wounds in it. The immediate prognosis was massive nerve, bone, and muscle damage. The doctors were surprised – yet again – that she was not dead. She was on a morphine drip with a lot of drugs to help speed the healing process.

Dawn approached Buffy slowly. She joined her sister in watching Xander hold Faith's hand and talk to the unconscious woman. Dawn touched her elbow and handed her a cup of Starbucks coffee.

"How's she doing?"

"Which she?"

"Any."

"Willow's past the danger zone," Buffy said. She took a sip of coffee, not tasting it.

"And Kennedy?"

"She's in critical condition. So is Faith, still."

"Wow. Slayer healing and all, huh?"

"Yeah."

"What are you going to do?"

"Find Rhona and Amanda and end this."

"What do you want me to do?"

"Go home," Buffy said. She looked at Dawn. "They can't hurt you there 'cause they can't get in. Please go home. You're the only one I love who hasn't been hurt yet."

"Okay."

"Promise."

"I promise."

Buffy spun on her heel and began walking away.

"Where are you going?"

"To do that finding thing."

In middle of the afternoon, Rhona stood against a wall, a stream of sunlight less than an inch away from her face. Her arms were crossed in front of her and her eyes closed. She tilted her head back to lean it against the wall.

when the last of the blood was pumped into her, Rhona's body convulsed violently. The spasmodic thrashings were so turbulent that she dug herself into the ground simply by her movements. After a few minutes, they stopped. Rhona the vampire Slayer was dead.

Rhona snapped out of her memory and looked around the room. In the doorway stood Cedric. She relaxed slightly.

"Good," he said. "Your instincts are better than I hoped they'd be so soon. Come on, the Mistress is waiting for you."

They began making their way to the throne room.

"Cedric, the other night, when I was this close to killing Xander and Faith, why couldn't I finish?"

"The twenty minutes was up."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Rhona, I am a very powerful vampire. You are my child. As your sire, I have the ability to compel you to certain actions. I told you to be back at that corner in twenty minutes. You had to obey."

"Will I have to obey no matter what, every time?"

"No. I have to concentrate on the order in a certain way. When you begin to sire children, you'll understand what I'm talking about. Otherwise, it's just too hard to explain."

"Oh."

"And this ability of mine will wear off on you in time. Given how powerful you already are, I'd say it shouldn't be more than a couple decades."

"That's all?" she asked with sarcasm.

"Twenty years is nothing to a vampire," he smiled. "But don't worry. You've trained with Scott and Clare, so now I don't have to worry about you. I won't be giving orders like that again."

"Just how powerful am I?"

"Like I told you yesterday, you're a Master vampire. When you kill that Slayer, Buffy, you'll be even more powerful. Slayer blood always makes us stronger."

"That's good to know," Rhona said with a smile.

They arrived at the door to the throne room. Cedric motioned her on.

"I cannot come with you," he said. "I have to get ready for my turn on the excavating crew. And I don't get to be off it until we find what we're looking for. Fallout from last night's catastrophe."

Rhona shook her head ruefully, "See, it's not just me."

"No, it's not."

Rhona smiled at him and entered the throne room. She found Amanda there already. Rhona hid her scowl. Amanda had probably been sitting outside the door by noon, waiting to be one of the first of the Mistress' children to see her. She most likely fawned all over the Mistress before Rhona arrived.

"Ah, good, you are here," the Mistress said. She smiled that fang-only smile of hers. Rhona could not stop the shiver that ran down her spine at the sight.

"Come here, my daughters."

They obeyed. The single lamp in the far corner of the room cast eerie shadows upon the Mistress' face.

"Night approaches. Can you feel it?"

"Yes, Mistress," they both said.

"Do you know why I brought the two of you into my family?"

"To kill Buffy, Mistress," Amanda said.

"Do you know why I want you to kill this Buffy?"

"No, Mistress."

"An oracle told me that my downfall would come at the hands of a Slayer on the Hellmouth. A Slayer who was a companion to death twice over. This oracle also informed me that this Slayer would multiply her kind throughout the world. Does any of this mean anything to you?"

"Well, Buffy did have Willow invoke the Slayer Legacy to make all Potentials Slayers," Rhona said. At the Mistress' look she added, "Mistress."

"And I think from what Dawn said, she died at least once, maybe twice, Mistress," Amanda added.

"Quite. And I found all this out through various means. Add to that the fact that she was free of one hellmouth and came to another. She is the Slayer of the Hellmouth, and I have lived too long to let some slip of a girl destroy me.

"The good news is that the oracle told me to beat this Slayer I would need to make another Slayer my ally." She motioned to them. "Thus, the two of you."

"Sounds like a plan," Amanda said. "Does this mean we get to kill Buffy now, Mistress?"

"Yes, it does."

The sun was just beginning to dip below the horizon when Buffy knocked on the rectory door. Fr. McMillan opened it and looked at her in surprise.

"Buffy! Run out of holy water all ready?"

"No. I have plenty, thanks."

"Then why are you here?"

"Actually I feel kind of dumb," she began. "Can I ask a favor of you? It's kind of big."

"What is it? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, for now. I know you don't know me and I completely understand if you don't want to. But you're the only person I can turn to right now."

McMillan took a concerned step toward her. "Buffy, slow down. It's okay."

"It's not okay, that's the problem."

"Well, whatever you ask me, I'll try my best to do it."

Buffy took a deep breath, steeling her resolve. "I need you to get my sister out of Cleveland and someplace safe. Unless I tell you otherwise. And I need you to do it before sundown tomorrow."

"Dawn? You want me to get Dawn out of town? By tomorrow night?"

"Please." She stepped forward so she was under his chin. She looked up with pleading in her eyes. "I need someone to do it and my friends are all in the hospital."

"What happened to them?"

"It's complicated and I don't have time to explain. I know this is asking a lot and we've only talked that one time, but I feel like I can trust you." She thrust a package in his hands. "Here's a picture of her. And my address. There's some money stashed in the cabinet by the door, just in case."

"Buffy…What's going on?"

"I do not have time to explain. I need to know Dawn will be okay if I don't come home after tonight."

"That bad?"

"Worse." She shrugged her shoulders. "But I'm it."

"Not anymore, you're not."

"I am here in Cleveland."

Fr. McMillan bit his lip while considering. He looked down at the papers in his hand then at Buffy.

"That's a lot to ask," he said. "I mean, she's your sister and you hardly know me."

"Yes, she's my sister, and yes I don't know you. But you're a priest, and not a psycho one, so I figured you'd be trustworthy enough to take care of her. She's the most important thing in my life. She's more important to me than life."

"Then I promise to get her out of town and to safety. Even if I have to drag her kicking and screaming the whole way."

"Thanks," Buffy said. "Oh, and watch out for tasers and stun-guns. She likes to carry them."

"I will."

Buffy pointed to another sheet of paper in McMillan's hands, "And once you're gone, contact that man, Rupert Giles, and let him know what happened."

She turned to leave.

"Buffy, this worse? Anything I can to do help?"

She looked over her shoulder. "Pray for me."

Cemeteries used to be spooky to Rhona. That was before she became a Slayer. Then they were just a part of the job. Now, they were home.

She and Amanda were together, hunting Buffy. There was not doubt in either woman's mind that Buffy would be hunting for them tonight. After the attack on her friends the two previous nights, Buffy would need to be sedated to not come after the two former Slayers.

All a part of my plan, the Mistress told them earlier today. Attack those she loves, make her feel vulnerable and then goad her into action by taking all she holds dear away from her. Thus, why I chose two Slayers she knew beforehand. You knew whom to attack to hurt her the most.

So while Buffy was hunting them, they were ready for her. They picked their way through the headstones.

"You're late," they heard a voice call out.

They turned and saw Buffy leaning against a headstone. "What took you two so long?"

"We had to put our make-up on," Amanda said.

"Wanted to look our best for when we kill you," Rhona added, as they made their way toward Buffy.

"Well, with the new look you two got, I don't think make-up will help."

"You look really pissed, Buffy. You sure you're okay?" Amanda asked.

"Oh, I'm beyond pissed," Buffy said. "And you two are so going to die."

"We're all ready dead," Amanda pointed out.

"Dust, then."

"You think you can take both of us?" Rhona asked. "When Faith got her ass kicked by just me?"

"Yeah, I do."

"Wow, you really are so full of yourself," Amanda said.

The three women were now only ten feet apart.

"Let's get this over with," Rhona said.

"I agree."

Rhona stepped forward, her arm behind Amanda's back. Amanda jerked upright, a look of shock overcoming her face. She turned to glare at Rhona. She crumbled into ash.

Rhona was holding a stake. She shrugged and looked at Buffy.

"She always did bug me. And she only got worse as a vampire. So what do you say? We just live and let live? I'm willing to walk away, here."

"You think it's that easy? You're a vampire."

"So I've noticed."

"I can't just let you go to hurt and kill innocent people."

"You can't beat me, either."

"No one messes with my family."

"Xander isn't your family. Neither is Faith."

"They're more family to me than most blood relatives ever could be. And you shouldn't have gone after them."

Rhona brandished her stake. "I'm betting this'll kill you just as quick as it killed Amanda."

Buffy stood up from the tombstone, reached behind it, and pulled out a long-handled ax.

"Well, come on, Rhona. Stake me."

Dawn answered the door to find a tall, good-looking priest standing on the porch.

"Hi, I'm Father Rory McMillan. Buffy got some holy water from me the other night."

"Hi," Dawn replied.

"She came to see me just a little bit ago. Do you know what's going on?"

"Uh-huh."

"Do you mind if I come in and you tell me what's happening?"

"No. You can stay right there."

"Fair enough," McMillan said. He sat down cross-legged on the wooden porch just outside the doorjamb. "How about now?"

Dawn smiled weakly.

Buffy was hurting. Rhona was bruised. Buffy's ax handle was broken and Rhona's stake was gone. Buffy was favoring her left side, where a well-placed kick from Rhona bruised her kidney.

Buffy took a swipe with the ax, which Rhona dodged. Buffy lashed out with her foot. Rhona blocked it. Buffy spun and went for an elbow to Rhona's face. She missed.

She tried with the ax again. Rhona dodged it and as it passed her, she grabbed the handle. She yanked and it went flying out of Buffy's hands to imbed itself in a headstone with a shower of sparks.

Buffy kneed Rhona in the chest. She followed up with a quick jab to the face. Rhona stumbled back from the assault, but recovered fast. When Buffy performed a jumping kick, Rhona sidestepped and hit Buffy with a quick and brutal jab of her own.

Buffy fell to the ground in an ungraceful heap. Rhona picked her up and threw her into the side of a large crypt. Buffy slid down the wall and remained at the bottom. Rhona picked her up again and pitched her headfirst toward a headstone. Buffy broke the granite slab as she flew through it.

Buffy struggled to her hands and knees. Rhona stalked slowly toward her. Buffy shook her head to clear it. Rhona heaved Buffy to her feet, her hand cocked back to strike.

Buffy held up the cross she had hidden in her waistband. Rhona stepped back hastily with a hiss. Buffy began to back Rhona up.

"Why, Rhona? Why a vampire? Was it just to get at me? To be better than me in a fight?"

Rhona rolled her eyes skyward. "Get over yourself. Not everything is about you. Do you think I wanted this? Asked for it? No. It was forced on me! I was violated! I didn't even get a choice."

Rhona brushed into the forgotten ax that was sticking out of the headstone. She pulled it free.

"But now I'm stuck like this," she said. "Might as well make the best of a bad situation."

She advanced and Buffy retreated, the cross still between them.

"She doesn't think she'll survive, does she?"

"No, she doesn't," McMillan replied.

Dawn was sitting in a dining chair, just inside the door, out of reach of McMillan. He was still seated on the porch, cross-legged.

"That's why you're here, isn't it? Just…Just in case."

"Yeah."

"What can we do?"

Rhona swung the ax, chopping the cross in two. Buffy dove at Rhona, effectively eliminating the weapon as a factor. The two women fell to the ground, rolling and punching. The ax was left behind.

"I've said a prayer," McMillan said. "Actually, I've said a few for her. If you want…"

"Prayer's really not my thing."

"Right, okay," he let it drop. "Tell me about Buffy."

"She's Buffy," Dawn said with a shrug of her shoulders. "Strong, tough, resilient. Always putting others first. Even if it seems like she's being a bossy bitch." She clamped her hand over her mouth, "Oops, sorry."

"No problem," McMillan said with a smile.

Rhona was searching through the cemetery. Somehow, Buffy had got away from her. She doubted the Slayer was gone, so she had to be hiding.

"Come on, Buffy. Don't make this harder than it is. I'll make it quick for old time's sake."

Buffy heard her. She was behind an average-sized tombstone, huddled to reduce her profile. In one hand she clutched the broken-off handle of her ax.

"You know, when I'm done here, I think I'll go to the hospital and finish what I started on Xander. He did taste pretty good. Then I'll go for Faith. Her being all-helpless after I beat the shit out her. I was told Slayer blood really makes you strong."

Rhona continued looking among the stones. Buffy's grip in the wooden handle tightened so much her knuckles turned white and cracked. Rhona stooped to pick up the fallen ax.

"Then I think I'll go after Dawn. Maybe I'll turn her. I mean, she's shown a lot of guts and even more resourcefulness in the past. She'd make one hell of a vampire."

Buffy's face darkened. Her lips pressed together tightly and her grip, tight as it was, tensed even more. She barely stopped herself from jumping onto her feet.

"Buffy, this game of cat and mouse is pointless. You can't take me."

Rhona reached Buffy's hiding spot. The blonde jumped up and grabbed the ax with one hand, stopping Rhona from swinging it. Rhona looked shocked.

"Wanna bet?" Buffy asked.

She plunged her other hand at Rhona, the ax handle's pointy end aimed for the heart. Rhona grabbed Buffy by the wrist millimeters from impact. She smiled evilly.

"Wagering your life on it."

Rhona snarled and threw Buffy over a few headstones. The weapons each woman was holding went flying into the darkness. Buffy landed with a thud. Rhona sprinted to Buffy.

"She's always rushing into danger, you know?" Dawn told Fr. McMillan

Rhona bent down to punch Buffy, but received a two-footed kick to the face instead. Buffy rolled over and jumped to her feet, wincing in pain. She attacked, Rhona defended.

"I mean, she's saved me so many times. Usually from myself. And the world, she's saved it too many times to count," Dawn said.

Rhona broke through Buffy's attack by jumping forward, shoulder-first. Buffy was barreled over. She rolled to one side, stopping when she ran into a metal flower hanger. She stood, pulling the hanger out of the ground with her.

Rhona approached. Buffy used the hanger as a weapon, beating the shorter woman with it.

"She's sacrificed so much of her life." Dawn continued. "Parties, friends, you know, normal stuff. She shouldn't have to lose her life, too. I mean, she already has before. This isn't fair."

Rhona caught the metal hanger, all bent from hitting her, and threw it aside. Jumping forward, she smashed her fist into Buffy's jaw. Buffy fell back onto her butt.

"She's a superhero," Dawn stated.

Rhona slammed Buffy against a tree, back first. She held her up against the tree, one hand around her throat, choking the life out of her.

"Now who's going to be her hero?" Dawn asked.

Rhona released Buffy. She fell to the ground, wheezing and coughing. Rhona stomped on her back, forcing her face into the ground. Buffy pushed herself onto her hands and knees when Rhona let up the pressure.

Rhona walked around Buffy. She stepped in and kicked her in the stomach. The blow sent Buffy flying. She hit a tombstone and used it to stand. Rhona sauntered up to the weary and battle-worsened Buffy.

"Who's going to save her?" Dawn asked.

Fr. McMillan bit his lower lip thoughtfully and shook his head sadly.

Suddenly, Rhona whirled around. She caught the crossbow bolt that was intended for her heart just before it could enter her torso. She tossed the offending wood away.

"Who's out there?"

Giles stepped out from the shadows, an empty crossbow in his hand.

"Oh, it's you."

"Yes, it's me," he said. "I'm here to stop a vampire who's trying to kill my Slayer."

"Well, I sure hope you brought more ammunition than that."

"He brought me."

Vi stepped out from behind Giles. She carried the Slayer's Scythe and she wore a crooked smirk.

"Hello, Rhona."

Rhona gathered herself to attack. Before she could, Buffy tackled her from behind, the discarded crossbow bolt in her hand. She rammed the bolt home, and Rhona let out a cry of pain when it entered her chest. But Buffy missed her heart by inches.

Rhona's cry of pain became a laugh of mockery. She flung Buffy aside and stood. When she did, Vi met her with the Slayer's Scythe. The thin Slayer wasted no time, decapitating Rhona before she knew what was happening to her.

Giles, followed soon by Vi, were standing over Buffy. She was bruised and tattered, but she was alive and conscious. She smiled through the pain radiating through her body.

"Perfect timing."

Buffy promptly lost consciousness.

Buffy, Willow, Xander, Giles, Dawn, and Vi, were all present when Faith and then Kennedy woke up. Willow was fine after one night. She and Xander were forced to sit in the only chairs in the room.

Faith was tired, as was to be expected after such extensive damage and even more extensive surgeries. She was thirsty, and in her own words, "hungrier than if I'd just killed a whole nest of Lords by myself." Her Slayer healing finally kicked in sometime during the night. She shocked the doctors with her test results. Solid food was not forthcoming soon, so she just had to live without until Buffy could sneak some in.

Kennedy was in better shape when she was admitted, so her Slaying powers compensated right away. She woke up only ten minutes after Faith. Her arm would be next to useless for a while. The ornamental spikes that pierced her arm did considerable damage. All three went through bone and muscle. The main nerve in her forearm was severed in two places. Not even Giles saw her getting away without physical therapy. And he was not sure if she would recover full use of her arm, Slayer healing or not. Other than that, she was mending fine.

"So that's it? No more Rhona or Amanda?" Kennedy asked when Buffy was done explaining, for the third time that day, what happened.

"Yup. No more vampires-who-should-be-Slayers," Buffy confirmed. "It was tough."

"We could tell by the bruising," Faith said. She was in a wheelchair beside Kennedy's bed.

"It's a good thing you guys showed up," Xander said to Giles and Vi.

"Yeah, or else we'd have one less Buffy in the world today," Willow added brightly to cover her nervousness at the prospect.

"And I'd be gone before sundown, whether I liked it or not," Dawn said.

"Well, I for one am happy on all accounts. Buffy being of the living and Dawn being of the Cleveland metropolitan area," Xander said.

"What was that all about, anyway? Dawn leaving?" Giles asked.

"It's a long story," Buffy deflected.

"Buffy had a contingency plan," Dawn stated.

"Apparently not that long," Buffy corrected herself. She looked over at Giles. "Just happened to be in the right graveyard at the right time, in a town you weren't supposed to be in? That sure was lucky on my part."

"Well, us being in the right cemetery was fortuitous," Giles said. "As for knowing we were needed here, you have Dawn to thank for that. She rang me yesterday and informed me that I was needed here with as many Slayers I could manage as soon as possible."

"And I was all he could find in time," Vi finished.

"When did you call Giles?" Buffy asked Dawn.

"After you left the hospital and sent me home," Dawn answered. "It's a good thing I did, too."

"Thank you."

Dawn beamed.

The Mistress' throne room was deathly quiet. Her children stood before her, arranged in their usual semi-circle. She drummed her fingers on the armrest of her throne with anger and impatience. Cedric strode in, followed by three other vampires.

"Any news?" she asked.

"Killed by the Slayer, Mistress," he answered.

The Mistress growled in anger. Her mood reflected in her children.

"This Slayer is a wily one. She survives two very powerful vampires and kills them in the process." She looked over their heads, contemplating her next move.

"This Slayer will not be my downfall," she stated after a long pause.

"No, Mistress," all her children intoned together.