Disclaimer :
Still not mine. Never will be.

xXx

Chapter 9

xXx

The gasp was what caught Tank's attention, bringing his gaze to Mac's face. A face that was rapidly draining of all colour. Even as Tank watched, he leaned back in his chair, never letting his eyes leave the page he had just read.

"Find something?"

Not softly spoken, yet the words made Mac flinch. Glancing over at his concerned friend, he nodded sombrely. Instead of just telling him however, he slid the book across the table and let Tank read the passage for himself. The sudden intake of breath confirmed when he reached the pertinent facts.

Research into the Books of Ascension had gone slowly, since they had needed to be translated before reading, but with some of the contacts the two men had it hadn't taken them too long. What really slowed them down was being forced to read through reams of boring text, looking for the one piece of vital information hidden within the pages. And now they had found it, and there were two outcomes.

On the plus side, they now knew what the Mayor was up to; on the negative, they now knew what the Mayor was up to.

He was planning, and had been for a very long time if the requirements for the ritual were to be believed, to turn himself into a true demon, the likes of which hadn't been seen walking the Earth in eons. Using the blackest of magics from the darkest of rituals, his physical body would be changed into one of the many different forms that the ancient demons had. Information on the forms themselves was sketchy at best, with only the barest of data given, but one fact was agreed on by all.

They were all huge beyond belief.

If that wasn't bad enough, if his plans were as advanced as Mac suspected then at the current time he was completely invulnerable to harm. Completely unkillable. Luckily, immediately after the transformation this was no longer true – yet if his form was to turn out to be the two hundred foot flying wyrm, one of the many possible outcomes, it wouldn't matter.

Everyone would be dead long before they figured out how to kill him.

The books were useful, no mistake about that, but they didn't have everything. In particular, they didn't give any intel on exactly what the Mayor was preparing – and to get that, Mac was going to have to do something very dangerous, something that could very easily get him killed, but he could see no other option. Beckoning to Tank to move closer, they put their heads together and began to plan.

It was a pity Xander wasn't back yet from his enforced holiday, but it couldn't be helped. Until things were squared with his friends, the kid was more likely to hinder than help.

Mac only hoped Xander would forgive him, when he returned.

xXx

Xander paused, hesitating on the threshold as he reached the library. The words he'd cried to Buffy that night seemed to be burned into his mind – as was the expression on her face. He wasn't looking forward to seeing them again, and the awkwardness that would be part and parcel with the seeing; yet it wasn't as if he could just run away.

It wasn't the kind of man he was, not anymore.

It was strange, he mused, but ever since he'd blown up at the slayer, all the rage and hate that had been filling his gut seemed to drain away, leaving him empty. Not that he was happy, just no longer consumed with anger. It was a strange feeling, since he'd been living with those feelings for so long they had become almost part of him, and now there was a gaping hole where they had been.

He'd even noticed that the overwhelming guilt and agony he felt at the occasional flash of Willow's body disintegrating in his arms was lessening, and he couldn't understand it.

But that wasn't why he was there. He had a purpose, and he would complete it, no matter what.

Letting his breath hiss out he squared his shoulders, then pushed through the doors, to find the first person he laid eyes on was a pale Buffy Summers who, upon seeing him, paled even more. Sitting next to her as usual was Willow, who started to ask what was wrong when she too realised he'd arrived. He felt a trembling run through his body as the girl he loved slowly rose to her feet, eyes widening. Here it came, the moment he was dreading.

"Xander! What's going on? Where have you been?"

He froze. The puzzlement and frustration in her voice spoke only of her usual feelings for him, a complete lack of anything else was clear. His gaze dragged to Buffy's, and he felt his breath catch at her ever so slight headshake – she hadn't told. Willow didn't know. His mind went blank, as he tried to cope with the impossibility of Buffy keeping secrets from her best friend, and any chance of thinking of a convincing lie went out the window.

It was lucky he wasn't alone.

"Ah, Willow?" An older voice broke into the staring match the two had fallen into, and the redhead's attention was dragged to Giles' face, letting Xander sag with relief, "Before, when Xander left the library and we went after him, there was a… confrontation, and certain harsh truths were brought to light. Apparently, in our quest to protect Xander from the dangers we face, we have just put him in… far more peril."

"W.. What?!" Her shocked cry was seemingly torn from her throat, as the colour bled from her face. Giles only nodded gravely.

"When Buffy and he spoke, there were… heated words exchanged," he paused, and glanced at Xander himself, before looking away quickly. Xander couldn't help but smirk at the shame that briefly flitted over the man's face, "and in his anger, Xander let certain things slip. After we… pushed him out, we thought his life would go back to normal. We never considered…"

He trailed off again. Xander thought he could see where this was going, and wanted to interrupt to get it over with, but felt it might not be a good idea; after all, he might not be the only one needing to get something off his chest.

He watched them, feeling like an observer outside his body, as Giles cleaned his glasses furiously and explained haltingly about the attempts on Xander's life, and how dangerous it was for him to be alone in Sunnydale now, after all that had happened. What surprised Xander, was that Giles didn't stop there. He went on to describe his, Giles', failings as a watcher and as a human being by not giving Xander the kind of training he'd deserved, he'd needed.

Xander was shocked at the depths to which Giles was going, all the time dodging round the biggest issue, but couldn't stop a frission of unease running up his spine. If he was reading Giles right, then any moment now he'd turn, and…

"Xander? How would you like to begin training under myself, learning those things I should have taught you before, learning how to take care of yourself?"

Xander groaned. Oh shit.

When he'd said it, it had been more to hurt them than anything else, but his careless words were now coming back to haunt him. Not only could he not accept, he had to find a way to decline without making them even more suspicious of him. He was frantically wracking his brains trying to find the solution, when a stopgap measure presented itself.

His phone rang.

Ignoring the shock on their faces at him owning the device, he accepted the call.

"Kid," Tank's gravely voice came over clearly, "you need to come in. We need to talk."

Then the line went dead.

Looking up at his friends, Xander let a lopsided grin appear, and said, "Much as I'd like to stick around at this awkward moment, I have to be somewhere. So I'll catch you all later. Happy hunting Buff."

His final words were left echoing in the air as he ran from the room, leaving three very stunned people behind.

xXx

Arriving at the base, he found that word had preceded him as the gate guard merely waved him through, unlike the last time. It was the work of a matter of minutes before he found himself ushered into the small guard hut where the two men had spent so much of their time, his brow crinkling with confusion at the single figure motioning at him to take one of the chairs.

"So what's the what?" Xander bypassed the customary greeting, still a bit sore from his poor treatment over the past week, choosing to rely on humour and sarcasm, "I was pretty sure you didn't want to see me at the mo. So what's changed?"

Tank stared at him, not saying anything, just letting the silence drag on. Xander frowned, then realised what the other's body language had been screaming at him, and stiffened in his seat.

"What is it?"

This time the words were far more precise, as well as businesslike. Sore feelings aside, Xander was well aware when it was time to act like a kid, and when to be a soldier.

"Firstly, you won't be seeing Bryce for a time. He's taken a leave of absence and gone to speak to some of his contacts throughout the town, some of his more… unique contacts." Xander sat up straight at that. Considering the dangers lurking in the shadows, for Mac to feel that this warranted his personal attention it must be very serious.

"Secondly, the reason he's had to go, is because we've discovered some information from the books you got. We know what the Mayor is up to."

A slight inhalation was all the outward sign that Xander heard, but as he leaned forward his posture betrayed his eagerness to learn.

Instead, Tank passed over a file to the young man. Gesturing at it he said, "In there are the translations we completed on the text in question, read it and you'll understand."

He stopped talking, but Xander's attention was already focussed on the few sparse pages before him. An occasional sound of dismay could be heard as he hit certain pertinent facts, but it wasn't until a shocked gasp was forced from his lungs, that Tank knew he'd reached the important part.

Meeting Xander's disbelieving eyes, he nodded sombrely, waiting for a reaction. A moment later, he had one.

"Well!" The chair creaked in protest as Xander slumped in his seat, "At least there's one thing you can say about Mayor Wilkins – he certainly thinks big!"

The sarcasm was understandable, especially after such a shock. Xander hadn't even been aware it was possible to turn yourself into a demon, nor that the things that they fought, both the Scoobies as well as he and his mentors, were not actually true demons. They were actually bastardised versions of the nightmarish creatures that had roamed the Earth long before dinosaurs had existed.

If he didn't have such an aversion to the thought, it might have been enough to drive him to drink.

Shaking it off, he stared Tank in the eye, and asked in a voice filled with determination, "So what do you need me to do?"

"We have a number of possible leads, but first thing to do is…" Tank was cut off as the shrill sound of a mobile phone going off filled the air. Both checked their handsets, but only Tank answered; Xander merely sat back and pondered what he had just learned, waiting for the call to be finished.

"Xander." His head snapped up at his name, "That was Bryce, he got his hands on some information. The Mayor is due to receive a package that has a direct impact on whether or not he succeeds – you have to retrieve it first."

"Okay. How much time do I have?"

"None." He shrugged at the sharp look Xander sent him, "Apparently the courier will be landing any moment. We need you to get to the airport and try to intercept it, but there's a good chance you'll be heavily outnumbered. If so, don't attempt anything, just follow them and try to discover where the package is being held. We'll work from there."

"Understood." Xander stood, and Tank mirrored him, "I'll do my best not to let either of you down." That said, Xander turned and left, rushing home to get the supplies he'd need if he was indeed about to go to war.

xXx

Getting to the airport was easy, getting inside was a little tricky but no hardship. Not allowing any of the vampires lurking in the shadows around the airfield to get the drop on him was a slightly harder challenge. As the latest dissolved into dust, Xander cocked an ear to find out if any of the other sentries had heard their comrade's death, but caught nothing. Relaxing slightly, he started to move towards the hangar once more, only to stop as the sound of a motor revving down reached him.

Glancing over, he cursed silently as he realised the vamps had delayed him more than he'd thought, as the plane had already landed. Keeping to the shadows, he tried to quicken his movements while keeping unseen, all the time keeping his senses trained on the plane on the tarmac. When the hatch opened and a man climbed out with a large box, Xander was still a good twenty feet from a potential ambush point, and he tried to get into position.

The man held the box tightly as he approached the nearby limo, and looked like he was having an argument with the vampire driver. Knowing his chance had come, Xander was about to attack when the unexpected happened.

An arrow sprouted from the shocked man's back, and he slowly collapsed to the ground.

Kicking himself for his oversight, he swiftly scanned the nearby rooftops for the sniper, feeling a chill run down his spine as a familiar form flowed into view.

Faith.

Watching her saunter over to the unmoving body, he cursed again. Against vampires or demons he knew he had a shot. Against Faith, outfitted as he was – not a chance. Not to mention he had a good ten to fifteen feet separating them, more than enough time for her to sense him coming and put him down. Most likely with the wicked looking bow she was holding.

Forced into the role of observer, he watched as they searched the corpse for a key to the handcuffs linking him to the package, only to come up dry. It wasn't until he saw the dark grin on her face as she drew a razor sharp knife, that he knew what she was planning. And as the sound of metal cutting through bone filled the air, he forced himself to watch, knowing that to win he'd have to be as hard as her.

Finally it was over and she and the vamp driver got into the vehicle and left, leaving two unmoving bodies behind, only one still breathing.

xXx

Surprisingly, when he returned to base he wasn't chewed out for the failure. Instead it was shrugged off as a minor FUBAR, and they moved to Plan B – break into the Mayor's office and steal the package. It was clear as the conversation progressed, that this had always been an option, and a strategy thought out; it all went so fast that Xander had barely enough time to hit the head before they were hustling out the door.

The drive to the Mayor's office went in silence with both men lost in their own thoughts, yet when they arrived things had gone sideways fast. The doors to the front entrance burst open and Buffy and Angel exploded through them, bowling over those vampires in their way, and escaping into the night. All the time, carrying the very box that they, Tank and Xander, had come to collect.

Sitting in the vehicle, watching absentmindedly as the building began to resemble a kicked hornet's nest, they exchanged bemused looks. It was clear that in their haste to prevent the Mayor's plans, they had forgotten to take into account that they wouldn't have been the only ones to hear about the delivery. Obviously word had reached the Scoobies, and they had taken their own preventative steps, managing to pre-empt the so-called professionals.

"I guess I should've stuck around in the library after all." Xander said conversationally, as if talking about the weather. Tank only nodded in reply, though a twinkle in his eye showed his own amusement at the events they had beheld.

"Maybe you should head back now, in any case." Tank stated, "If that package is as important to the Mayor's plans as we think, he's unlikely to take this lying down. You should be on hand if anything goes down."

Quickly seeing the logic, Xander nodded, and with a course of action decided, Tank started the car.

xXx

Walking through the library doors, Xander waved at the group gathered within, noting with interest that everyone was there. Buffy, Giles, Oz, Cordelia, Angel, even Wesley, the whole gang… He stiffened. There was one missing.

Where was Willow?

xXx

End of Chapter 9

xXx

Author's Note :

I'm a bad, bad, bad, bad… bad man. :)

Now I realise that I've rehashed some of what was said in the previous chapter, but it was needed for the person who wasn't there – though I made sure to try to keep it to the bare minimum.

Some slight changes from canon here, but mostly pretty close. Next chapter though… there will be a change, and I hope you'll enjoy it.

Another big thank you for all the wonderful reviews last chapter received, I hope I continue to please.

Well, see you next Friday.

Punster-Zero