Sunnydale, California

The Bronze

Giles, Jenny, Willow, Oz, Xander, and Cordelia huddled in the dark empty club decorated for Faith's surprise party. Xander frowned glancing up at the clock from around the beam, "Where is she?"

Willow shrugged, "Buffy isn't here either."

"Shhh!" Cordelia flipped her hand shushing them. "I think I hear her coming-"

The Bronze Loading Dock

Elizabeth walked with Faith down the loading dock of the Bronze to the door when they stopped watching three suspicious-looking vampire lift a rectangle box into the back of a cargo truck.

"This looks weird." Faith whispered.

"Hmm... yeah," Elizabeth smirked watching Dalton struggle to lift the box.

Faith tip-toed behind the vampires with her hands on her hips. "Every time I see you, you're stealing something." Faith recognised the intelligent vampire. "You should talk to somebody about this klepto issue."

The vampires spun around and attacked the Slayer.

Elizabeth gripped a hulky vampire's shoulder pulled away from Faith with a stake in her hand. She tossed him away and choked her hand around his throat. "Get gone." The Master Vampire whispered to the lackey.

Meanwhile, Faith fought another vampire crashing through the window leaving Elizabeth with Dalton.

"Leave the box, you incompetent moron," Elizabeth ordered keeping her stare firmly on the fight. "I'll handle it."

Dalton did not need to be told twice before he took off back to Crawford Mansion.

Elizabeth released a heavy breath and lifted the box from the ground and headed into the Bronze.

The Bronze

Elizabeth entered the club through the shattered window holding the wooden iron box in her arms. She peered over it to Giles and Xander to help her. "Some help would be nice."

Giles and Xander took the box from her arms and carried it over to a table. "What happened?" Giles asked.

Faith stretched out her arms, "There were these vamps in the alley. One of them were Angelus' guys—" She looked around the club noticing the party decorations with a smile. "What did you guys do?"

Giles looked at his Slayer, "Surprise party." He lamely blew the party horn.

Jenny stood over the box examining it curiously, "What is it?"

"Those creeps left it behind," Elizabeth said dusting off her hands.

Giles removed his glasses with a frown. "I have no idea. Can it be opened?"

Faith cautiously opened the lid and peeked into the box. The Scoobies sneak a glance to see a heavily armoured arm. The arm shot up from the box and gripped tightly around her neck. Elizabeth took the arm and forced it back down into the box then slammed the lid closed, locking it.

Xander blinked dumbfounded, "Clearly, the Hellmouth's answer to 'what do you get the Slayer who has everything'?"

Giles placed a hand on Faith's shoulder, "Good heavens, Faith, are you alright?"

"Yeah, man, that thing had a wicked strong grip." Faith massaged her sore neck.

Willow frowned, "What, what was that?"

Oz leant over to her and whispered, "Looked like an arm."

Elizabeth stared at the arm with troubled eyes and shook her head stepping forward, running a gentle hand over the closed box. "It can't be... He wouldn't..."

"What? The vamp version of 'snakes in a can'? Or do you care to share?" Xander looked at the vampire.

Elizabeth swallowed, "There's a legend. Way before my time. Of a demon brought forth to rid the earth of the plague of humanity." She removed her hand and looked at Faith and Giles. "To separate the righteous from the wicked... and burn the righteous down. They called him the Judge."

Giles' head snapped up with surprise, "The Judge? This is he?"

"Part of him." She shrugged. "He couldn't be killed. So an army was sent against him. Most of them died, of course, but they were finally able to dismember him. But it didn't kill him. The pieces were buried all over the earth never to be found."

"Until Angelus," Xander said staring at the box in disbelief. "Man, I hate that guy."

Elizabeth's eyes shot to the teenager's face but did not respond, plotting his death in her mind.

Jenny looked at Giles, "So all these parts are being brought here."

"By Angelus," Elizabeth said turning her eyes away from the gang with turmoil lingering in her eyes. "He's just crazy enough to do it."

"To do what? Reassembled the Judge?" Willow asked.

"And start an Armageddon." Elizabeth looked at the redhead desperately suppressing her urge to smile.

Giles gasped and looked at Faith, "We have to get this out of town."

"I can do it," Elizabeth said. "Faith can't go but I can. I'm strong enough to protect this thing."

Faith turned to the vampire folding her arms across her chest. "Where would you take it?" She winced at the harshness of her question but she did not fully trust the vampire.

"Somewhere far, far away." Elizabeth closed the box lid over the armoured arm.

Faith laid her hand over the lid of the box stopping Elizabeth from leaving with it. "I'm going with you."

A hint of a smile tugged at Elizabeth's lips when she said, "Fine. But we have to move fast."

Ship Docks

Elizabeth and Faith walked side by side down the wooden docks.

Slung over her shoulder, Elizabeth held on to the Judge's arm. Her eyes went to the corner near a stack of crates and saw shadowed figures disappear behind them.

"It's quiet." Elizabeth broke the silence in the air.

Faith frowned taking everything around carefully. Her guard was high up. In the corner of her eye, watching Elizabeth sceptical gaze. She believed that the vampire had a soul. She never gave her a reason to think any different. But there was something missing and Faith had no idea what. She just knew, unlike the rest of the group, she did not fully trust the vampire. Perhaps it was because she was still a demon inside.

"Wait here." Elizabeth suddenly said.

Faith stopped mid-step and looked at Elizabeth, "What? Why?" She gripped the stake hidden in her back pocket.

Elizabeth faced the Vampire Slayer, "Because I'm going to check the ship's schedule. Stay here with the arm." She gently placed the box down in front of Faith's feet and disappeared into the darkness leaving the Slayer alone.

Faith crossed her arms and rolled her neck as she waited.

Suddenly, Dalton and two other lackey vampires leapt out from behind a cargo net and attacked the vampire Slayer down to the ground.

Faith punched the vampire off of her and slid the wooden box further away out of the vampires reach as they fought her.

"Buffy!" Faith cried out struggling to break free from the chokehold.

Dalton looked at the Slayer than turned his head in search of the box. He spotted it near the edge of the dock near the water. He went to it when Elizabeth appeared again. She bent down and grabbed Dalton by his shirt collar and dragged him up to his feet. "Take the box and go." Elizabeth quietly ordered.

The vampire nodded his head and went to pick up the box when Elizabeth tapped his shoulder getting his attention. Dalton looked up at her. Elizabeth sucker punched him straight in the nose. He gushed from his nostrils. He nodded his head again and scampered off holding the box tightly in his arms.

Elizabeth waited until she could no longer see Dalton running through the shadows when she turned back around and went back to Faith's aide.

"A little help would be nice!" Faith shouted through gritted teeth.

Elizabeth grasped the vampire's shoulder and pulled him off of her. She pulled out of a stake tucked into the back of her pants and embedded it into the vampire's heart. She then held out her hand for the player to take.

"Where the hell were you?" Faith asked getting to her feet.

"I was attacked..." Elizabeth lied pointing into another direction. "Are you okay? Where's the box?" She searched around herself.

Faith's eyes widened, "They took it. Goddamnit! They took the fucking box!"

Ever the calm on in a stress situation, Elizabeth nodded and said, "We should split up and search for it."

"Do you know where it's going?"

Elizabeth looked at the dark haired Vampire Slayer with a frown, "I've got a pretty good idea."

Sometime Later

Sunnydale High Library

Giles, Jenny, Xander, Cordelia, Willow, and Oz gathered around the long table surrounded by a large open pile of books waiting for Faith to return.

"Faith should be back by now..." Giles said with a frown worried for his Slayer.

Willow looked up from the book and shrugged, "Maybe she took a quick sweep across the cemetery."

"You know what's really sad?" Xander began sitting back in his chair.

"That now you have to drool all over Buffy from afar?" Cordelia rolled her eyes flipping the page of a fashion magazine spread out in front of her.

"Yes, well," Giles adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose, "Now, our problem is what to do about Angelus."

Jenny nodded her head, "Yeah, when he finds out not only did his monster arm skip out of town but so did his ex-girlfriend."

Willow sat back in the chair, "Oy."

"We hadn't thought of that." Giles frowned removing the glasses from the bridge of his nose.

"What will happen?" Xander asked darting his eyes from Giles too Jenny.

Cordelia looked at the dark haired man, "Oh, I assume all hell will break loose."

"Yikes." Xander gulped with a fright.

The library doors swung open and Faith entered. "Angelus' guys ambushed us." She said and made a b-line into the back cage for weapons. "They took the box."

"Where's Buffy?" Giles asked.

"We split up. She had a lead on where Angelus is camping out. Some mansion or whatever on Crawford Street. I'm meeting her there."

Giles went to the weapons cage, "Well, you're not going alone. Xander," he gestured for him to come along.

Xander gathered a stake and crossbow from the table and rushed out of the library to catch up with the Watcher and Slayer.