Chapter 9


"I know where the exit's at! C'mon," Spike called over his shoulder as he led the way down the hall, twisting through the branches of the maze, the moan of their attackers fading as they ran.

"Why didn't you say something before?" Buffy gasped, breathing heavily as they careened down another hallway, deeper into the belly of the Labyrinth.

"I didn't know before, luv. It just came to me." Spike stopped, pressing his hand against the empty wall, a frown casting across his face. "Let's rest a minute, it's just ahead."

"We don't have time!" Buffy breathed, but the echo of her boots on the floor stopped, and she lingered, aware of Angel near her side.

"It just came to you? Like a memory?" Angel asked, scratching his head absently.

"Like I was really there, for a minute,"

"Must be an after-effect of the portal; passing through it corrupts your memories of it, for a short time at least."

"I remembered something else," Spike sighed, sliding down the wall, his leather coat scraping along the concrete. "I read up on the portal, somethin' I heard about it once, wanted to check up, see if it was true."

"Where did you…? Never-mind, just…what else did you remember?"

"Well, the Labyrinth affects magical creatures, right? Closes 'em off from the rest of the world? Well, it has an extra security device, keeps anything from escaping after its inside."

"There better be a silver lining to all this, Spike." Angel growled through the darkness.

"In order to keep magick in for good, anything that passes through the portal before it closes loses its magical essence."

"So, the zombies? The vampires?"

"They'll lose their magical whatsit, mate. Dunno what that means exactly, though." Spike paused, pressing his hand against the wall. "Could mean anything, really. That's how them magical spells work, don't they?"

Between them, silence passed for a moment, a speechless reaction to the truth about the portal and the Labyrinth itself. But it didn't last. A scream burst through the passage, spreading like a wave down the bank of turns, flowing into their ears.

"Faith!" Buffy called out, quietly at first, as though she might be in their vicinity. But knowledge spread over them instantly. She wasn't with them. She hadn't been for quite some time.

"Slayer," Spike growled, setting his jaw. "The portal is about thirty feet down this hall. It's a straight shot, no turns. Just keep running. Take Captain Forehead with you, could be trouble up ahead. When you get to the portal," he paused, reaching out, pulling her wrist into his cool hand. "Just jump through it, luv. Trust me, you'll like the other side."

"Where the hell are you going?" Buffy grunted, almost yanking her hand away but releasing her hostility.

"This time, William's gonna be the hero," he grinned, flashing his pure white teeth.

"Good luck, Spike," Angel grimaced, listening as the vampire took off back down the hall, twisting around the turns, armed with nothing but his fangs and his pride.

The hall stretched out beyond them like a mouth, gagging for them, choking for them. Together, the champions set off down the passage, their shoes casting echoes along the walls, reaching out beyond them like desperate fingers.

"Hold it, Slayer," growled an old, familiar voice, sweetened with melody, soft and distinctively devious.

"Renee," Buffy scowled, lifting the Scythe in front of her, aiming for the voice.

"You know, I always thought vampires were evil, villainous things. Then I became one, and I have to say, I'm welcoming the change."

The portal yawned behind them, casting an eerie pink light on the horde of former vampire slayers turned vampire themselves. There were at least fifty, perhaps more, stacked up in front of the exit, waiting, quiet, patient. It seemed so unlike a vampire to remain, waiting for prey. But these were slayers, and they'd been trained to kill.

"I'd blame you, Slayer. Look what you did to us. Look what you made us. But, honestly, I'm pretty happy about the whole thing. Killing you will be like icing on a cake."

"I was always an ala mode sorta girl," Buffy sneered, tossing the axe into the air, allowing gravity to yank it back down, slicing the head from the body, turning the Potential to dust.

Beside her, Angel through his fist into the crowd, tossing a few fragile young girls across the floor, toppling a few more, like pins in a bowling alley. Buffy shoved the weapon at Angel, drew back her fist, and shoved it through another girl, throwing her body fully against the horde. She fell through them like rain through the grass, cracking skulls and twisting necks, spreading dust across the floor. But still they came, from every corner of the dead end, on all sides of the portal that seemed to shrink as they approached.

"We don't have to dust all of them! Just make it to the portal!" Angel called out, thrusting either end of the Scythe through a vampire on either side of him.

"I'm not going through it without you!" Buffy retorted, her voice almost a scream about the chaotic din. "I'm not leaving you again!"

"I'm right behind you," Angel whispered against her ear, passing her the ancient weapon, pressing his lips against her neck. Briefly, he felt the lingering scar he'd left with her so many years ago. A shudder dipped down his spine. Thrusting his hands against her back, he pushed her firmly toward the gaping pink spiral.

"Go! Damnit, Buffy, go!"