Chapter Eight
Many Meetings
The small side door to the warehouse slid silently open, disturbing the thick layers of dust that coated the entire room beyond. A sliver of silver moonlight spilled in, casting long eerie shadows as Faith stepped quietly through, her whole body tense and ready for action. She paused, half in, half out the doorway, her eyes flickering back and forth as she took in her surroundings. The interior of the warehouse was disturbingly silent, the only sound to be heard coming from occasional traffic on the road outside. It was so dark she could barely see more than a few feet in front of her, and the dust in the air was almost stifling.
Slowly she slipped the rest of the way inside, all along cursing the darkness inside her head. This was like a blind man taking on a guy with twenty-twenty vision in broad daylight. One sided to say the least. Behind her, she heard Gunn step quietly in through the door.
"You see anything?" he whispered. In the darkness, Faith could just make out the stake he was clutching.
"Not a damned thing." She said frustratedly, shaking her head as she did so. Not saying another word she slipped off into the darkness. If there was a vampire in here, he probably already knew they were inside. That pesky business of them being nocturnal gave them excellent low light vision.
As she turned her head to take in her surroundings again, a light flicked on at the other side of the warehouse. The warm glow spilled out through a doorway at the top of a cast iron set of stairs. The door seemed to be the entrance to a large set of rooms that overlooked the main warehouse through a series of windows. If she screwed her eyes up tight enough she could just make out a shadow moving up there.
"Looks like we found my new neighbour." Said Gunn, his sharp grin seeming to shine in the blackness. "Do you reckon we should pay him a nice neighbourly visit?"
"Would be rude not to say hi." Faith shrugged as she crept toward the stairs.
As they crept quietly across the warehouse, Faith couldn't help but let her mind wander. It had been so long since she'd been on the hunt she'd almost forgotten what it was like. As the familiar feelings of adrenaline, excitement and, dare she even think it, fear grew within her so too did memories of previous hunts. That time down in Florida was one of the first to spring to mind. God it had been hot that summer. She hadn't been lying when she'd told Buffy and the others she'd been sleeping nude. It had been the only way to cool down in that blast furnace heat. The memory of wrestling the alligator flashed to the surface. Now that had been fun, none of the planning or the posturing of fighting against a vamp, just the pure adrenaline fuelled desperation it had taken to stay out from between those car crusher jaws. She patted her pocket gently. She'd never told anyone, but she had secretly held on to one of the things teeth. It was kind of a dorky thing to do, taking a good luck charm from something that had nearly eaten your face off, but then, Faith had never looked at things quite the same way as everyone else, especially after she had been chosen as the Slayer.
The stairs rattled slightly as she placed her foot on them. She winced invisibly at the sound, pausing to see if anyone appeared. There was nothing. With a brief sigh of relief she started up the stairs again, more cautiously this time.
The rooms at the top were flooded with light. The shadows cast by the warm glow span gently as the lamp swung slowly from side to side above Faith and Gunn's heads. Cautiously, the two of them moved from room to room, scanning each one for any sign of their – so far – invisible quarry. As they came to the last room, Faith caught sight of a brief flicker of movement. She reached up with her arm, grabbing him and swinging him out of sight of the doorway. A look of surprise spread across his face at just how strong she was. He was about to speak when she reached up and clamped her hand across his mouth, shushing him with her free hand. He nodded and she released him.
She peered round the doorframe, gazing into the room beyond. A man was stood at the centre of a large room, the walls around him lined with glistening decorations of gold and other jewel encrusted pieces. Faith was no scholar but even she could recognise an Egyptian sarcophagus when she saw one. A large high backed chair with cushioned arm rests sat imperiously at the far side of the room, a securely boarded up window at its back that no moonlight could penetrate. The man was topless, his whole chiselled figure moving through various fighting forms with an eerie grace that only someone with decades of experience could possess. A huge tattoo of a black bladed sword ran perfectly in line with his spine down to the small of his back. She frowned. She remembered that tattoo but she couldn't place where she'd seen it before. She watched, fascinated as he launched into a series of short, powerful elbow thrusts, before using the momentum of his final thrust to carry him onto his forward leg, swinging out with the other in a perfect roundhouse. His long ponytail whipped round with him, lashing loudly at the air as he settled back into his regular stance.
"Check out the moves!" said Faith, stepping into the room and slipping easily into her hard ass persona at the same time. The vampire whirled around to face her, mild surprise registering on his face. Faith's eyes widened briefly before she managed to check herself. She'd seen him before! The chiselled pale face, a smaller version of the tattoo that covered his back sat uncomfortably close to his right eye. It was the man from her dreams!
"I'd ask you to teach me," she continued, her voice no longer as sure as it had been, "if it wasn't for the whole blood sucking fiend thing." The vampire cocked his head slightly as he regarded her, and for a brief moment, Faith thought she caught a flicker of recognition in his eyes as his mouth moved in a silent word. Faith frowned slightly. Had he just said Soonan? Had he recognised her from her dreams as well? How was that even possible, they'd been her dreams! Her dreams damn it! Hadn't they?
"And I would've." the vampire said slowly as he stood watching her, his arms folded tightly across his chest, "if it wasn't for the whole breaking into my home and quite obviously threatening me thing." His tone was a mocking imitation of hers. For long moments the two of them stood facing each other in silence.
"Who sent you?" the vampire said finally. "That runt, Garcia? If you're the best he has, then I'll be doing him a favour when I rip your head off." Faith smiled sweetly, revealing her clean white teeth.
"I'm not that easy." She said innocently. The vampire's upper lip curled in a derisive sneer.
"You look it." He said, his eyes roving over her. Faith glanced briefly over the vampire's shoulder, to see Gunn creeping in through another door at the far end of the room. The vampire was more observant than she'd thought he would be. He caught her glance and span on the spot to face the sneaking figure of Gunn. Cursing loudly, Faith charged the vamp. With a guttural snarl he snapped back to face her. Her arm lashed out in a rapid blow aimed straight for his face and already she felt satisfaction flow through her. There was no way he could react in time. Her face sagged in dismay when he did. His whole body moved so fast he was little more than a blur, as he ducked her punch and slipped inside her guard. She felt his hand close around the waistband of her leather pants while his other gripped tightly at her top. Using her own momentum against her, he heaved her bodily off the ground, flipping her wildly over him and slamming her hard against the ground. Her breath exploded out of her lungs as she hit the floor. Still not letting go, he lifted her easily off the ground and hurled her hard against the wall. She collapsed to one knee, gasping breathlessly as she looked up to see Gunn throw himself at the vampire, his stake lashing out for the creature's heart. Once again, the vampire blurred as he moved, slipping past Gunn, swinging out with his leg as he passed to catch the over balanced Gunn in the back as he sailed harmlessly by. The youth slammed headfirst into the nearby wall, his ankle snapping loudly as it failed to carry his weight. He slumped to the ground, a combination of the head blow and the broken ankle driving him into unconsciousness. Desperately, she clambered panting to her feet. Who the hell was this vamp? He was certainly stronger than your average bear.
"Okay then Yoghi!" she muttered under her breath. "Let's see what you're really made of!" She dropped into her fighting stance, fists raised in front of her, one slightly higher than the other as she braced herself to attack. The vampire turned slowly to face her again.
"So, you're still standing." He said, a slight look of surprise on his face. He cast a contemptuous glance toward Gunn's prone form. "Better than your friend here. But then again, that's not difficult."
"You'll find I'm full of surprises." She said, and then smiled darkly as she prepared to deliver the coup de grace. "Vampire Slayers always are." The vampire stared at her blankly. Faith groaned.
"Oh c'mon man! How can you not have heard of the Slayer?" The vampire continued to stare at her as if she was growing another head. "We hunt your kind for God's sake! One dies the next is called'n all that!"
"I know what the Slayer is." Said the vampire as he continued to stare at her. "I'm just trying to figure out why a little girl like you would lie like that. Pretending to be the Vampire Slayer is a dangerous game to play."
"I'm not pretending!" said Faith, trying hard not stamp her foot indignantly. It didn't fit her image. "I am the Slayer!" The vampire shook his head in denial.
"Impossible. There can only be one Slayer at a time, and you're not the current Slayer."
"You know Buffy!" said Faith, her voice rising in disbelief. This wasn't going according to plan! How could she intimidate the guy when he didn't believe her!
"All too well. Now explain to me why you've come here, pretending to be a Slayer of all things and are trying to kill me."
"Uh hey!" Faith said, raising her hand as if trying to get his attention. "Vampire Slayer standing in front of you and you're asking why I'm trying to kill you? Did you just skip logic for breakfast this morning?" The vampire's eyes narrowed and he was about to speak again when another voice that Faith had never heard before cut him off.
"As much as I would enjoy to here this discussion go round and round in ever decreasing circles, I'm afraid I have deadlines to meet, so if you'd just let me finish this little disagreement the two of you have going…" Faith's head whipped around so fast she could have sworn she'd just given herself whiplash. A figure was emerging slowly from the darkness. He was a fairly small, oriental looking man, his hair long and loose, hung almost to his waist. He wore a long black coat with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, leaving his fore arms bare. He was handsome, in a slightly feminine way, with sharp blue eyes and a delicate milky complexion to his skin. If Faith squinted, she could just make out the hilt of a sword swinging at his hip.
"Yes, she is the Slayer, and yes, I'm guessing she's here to kill you." The strange man continued as he moved. "But I can't allow her to do it master. My honour would not permit it." The vampire Faith had been fighting narrowed his eyes.
"Is that…" he paused as he studied the man more closely. "Is that you Shinji?" A vague hint of a smile touched the new comers face.
"So you do remember me." He said slowly. "I was unsure of just how much you'd be able to remember after the spell had taken place. Souls can be unpredictable things for our kind to possess."
"You've got a soul!" Said Faith, not even trying to hide the incredulity in her voice.
"I remember everything." The vampire hissed, ignoring her. "Especially you!" for the first time, Faith heard a trace of disgust enter into the vampire's voice. Shinji frowned.
"Have I displeased you in some way?" he said as he moved ever closer.
"Only by living this long!" the vampire hissed. "I left you to burn in that city, along with all the others. You disgusted me."
"But you left me. You killed the rest and left me to spread your words. You will see that I have not been found wanting!" This time Shinji's smile was broad. "You allowed me to look back on what we had done, to see where we had gone wrong and after all this time I believe I've found the answer behind your words. It is an answer I plan to share with you!"
"And an answer I am no longer interested in hearing." snapped the vampire. Shinji nodded sagely.
"I had a feeling you'd say something like that." Suddenly and without warning he dropped to one knee in front of the vampire. "I prostrate myself before you master, and beg you to reconsider your decision. You will not be disappointed, I swear!" The tall vampire shook his head.
"I was always disappointed in you Shinji, but now I truly am disgusted by you. All these centuries and you still haven't learned a thing!" the vampire snarled contemptuously. Shinji glared at him as he straightened, his eyes like daggers of ice.
"And who are you to judge me? I have stayed loyal to you for centuries while even you have abandoned yourself! I have spread your words and beliefs so widely among our kind that armies of us await your return, to lead us to a new way! The way you promised us!" he turned away slowly, his voice turning strangely sad. "So disappointing to find that after centuries of waiting, you have turned away from your rightful place among us." As he spoke, more figures began to emerge from the shadows, first one, then another and another and another. Faith's eyes widened in disbelief as at least twenty men emerged into the room, each one wearing the feeding mask of a vampire. The small oriental man turned back to face them again. He too was now wearing a vampires feeding face.
"Why am I not surprised?" Faith muttered under her breath.
"I will restore you master. This I vow on my honour…" there was a brief pause as he motioned to the others. "Take them." He hissed. The gang of vamps didn't need telling twice. They surged forward toward Faith and the vampire, snarling loudly as they moved.
Faith floored the first one to meet her with a well aimed punch to the midriff, but to her astonishment, the vamp rolled as it hit the floor, leaping back to its feet almost as if she hadn't even touched it. Barely having time to think, her leg shot out and caught the next vampire squarely under the chin. The creature's eyes rolled back in its head as it collapsed to the floor. Without wasting time, she pulled her stake free and plunged it into the vamps heart. The creature cursed loudly as it exploded into a cloud of dust. She glanced over at the other vampire she'd fought earlier, and felt ever so slightly envious of him. He moved with supernatural speed, tearing through his opponents like they were paper, but as still more vampires poured into the room through the doors, Faith knew they were fighting a losing battle. There were just too many vamps.
"Hey!" she yelled over the top of the sounds of battle. "We gonna get outta here or what?" The vampire span into a vicious roundhouse that slammed one of his attackers hard against the wall, backhanding the next creature to try and jump him.
"I'd say that would be a very good plan!" he yelled back, as he ducked a blow from a nearby vamp, sweeping its legs out from under it as he went. He straightened, turned sharply on his heel and darted to her side.
"If you have any ideas on how to get out of here, let me know!" he said. Faith shot him a dazzling grin.
"Way ahead of you big guy!" she said. Together, the two of them fought their way toward the back of the room, where the vampires huge seat lay. Faith wrapped her arms around the back of the chair, heaving it into the air with some considerable effort and swung it hard against the boarded up window. The boards shook under the impact but didn't break. She swung the chair again, already feeling her arms tiring. Once again the boards shook. With an exasperated grunt, the vampire grabbed the chair out of her hands as if it weighed next to nothing and hurled it hard against the boards. The heavy oaken frame of the chair slammed hard against the wood, crashing clean through it and the window beyond before tumbling to smash on the solid concrete below. Faith stared out of the window and felt her stomach turn at the distance to the ground below. One of the bad points about plummeting off a building with a knife in your side was that it instilled something of a fear of heights in you.
"Time to go!" said the vampire, grabbing her roughly by the arm and swinging her up like a babe in arms.
"Hey!!" Faith's embarrassment was clear as she tried to struggle free of his grasp. "What about Gu…?" she didn't have time to finish before the vampire had leapt from the window. She felt the wind rush through her hair as they dropped toward the solid concrete like a stone. She risked glancing down to see the ground hurtling up to meet them. Then suddenly they were down, the vampire dumping her unceremoniously on the ground as he straightened.
"Come on." He hissed to her as he began to sprint away from the warehouse.
"But my friend…" Faith began.
"Is already gone." The vampire snapped. "We need to get out of here."
Already the sounds of the other vampires in the building were growing louder as they dashed down to catch them. Faith threw a despairing glance to the building then took off after the vampire. Behind her she heard one of the other vampires roar with delight at the sight of them. She could just picture them flooding out of the warehouse in pursuit.
"Where are we going?" she yelled after the vampire in front of her.
"My car!" he yelled back as they dashed headlong round a corner. Faith slammed heavily into his back as he pulled up suddenly.
"Or at least we were." He said. Faith peered past him, her whole body sagging in disbelief. The battered old Land Rover sat mockingly in front of them, smoke billowing from the bonnet, which had been wrenched clean open. The engine had been completely destroyed.
"Just out of interest," she said in too calm voice, "do you have another car?" The vampire shot her a dark look before dashing off into the night again. Faith shrugged.
"I'll take that as a no then." She said, taking off after him.
*****
Shinji strode casually out of the warehouse, watching as a small group of his vampires whose excitement had got the better of them went dashing headlong into the night in pursuit of the dark haired Slayer and his master. He smiled at the sight. They were all younger ones, not one of them more than two decades as a vampire, the lust for the kill was still strong in them, the excitement of the hunt still coursed through them. They were going to get themselves killed
"Grachus!" he yelled. His favourite among the horde he had assembled jogged to his side. "Order those who remain to fan out and surround this neighbourhood. Cut off all the possible ways in or out. All we need to do is keep them here. They have only a few hours before the sun comes up and then we will be able to run them to ground all the more easily." Grachus nodded silently before moving off to inform the others.
Shinji turned and strode to the edge of the warehouse district where the dark stretch limo awaited him. He hadn't been sure what to expect from his master, after all, he wasn't exactly the vampire who had made Shinji all those centuries ago, but still the sheer contempt with which he'd regarded him had been unexpected. No matter. His oath of loyalty would not be broken, could not be broken without the loss of his honour and to Shinji that was unacceptable. The debt had to be repaid.
He stood; staring in the direction he'd seen the two of them flee.
He hadn't expected this Slayer to be such an obstacle. From what he heard she was undoubtedly the lesser of the pair, but the one called Buffy had succumbed so much easier than this Faith. He sniffed at the air slowly. He could still feel her scent wafting through his nostrils. It was a scent of desperation, confusion, and even a little fear. He smiled. It was good that she was afraid. It would make her all the easier to track.
Still smiling, he turned and strode off toward the waiting limo. The hunt had begun.
