Disclaimer: I do not own the series involved in this story.
Author's note: So for anyone keeping up with this, this is the last chapter of this saga. However, the story itself is not done. I'm curious as to the thoughts that all have about where I'm taking this story and why I've changed most of it. My answer is this: my reason for using fanfiction is to explore the aspects of certain characters that I've seen on television shows and movies, or that I've read about in novels. In all honesty, majority of fanfictions only further the canon that has been published or televised, which doesn't really change anything as far as the characters go. I've seen actual plots that not only change the canon plots but also give the characters greater depths, which does a great justice. The buffyverse is one such example as it does great in many aspects but falls short on so many, character development being one. Buffy is the eponymous character and hero, but the show has never been entirely about her. There's also the concept of female empowerment which has only achieved the tearing down of the male characters that are not only 'special' but also have provided great aid. If Whedon really wanted to use female empowerment, then both men and women on the show would be equal in all aspects, but instead, he practically threw Giles and Xander to the sidelines by season 4.
Also, in regards to the mythology, while Whedon is atheist, which I personally have nothing against unless my beliefs are trashed, he has based a good deal of the mythology off of Abrahamic religions, with tidbits of other cultural mythos mixed in, but even then he's never quite explained someone like Glory, who was a demon as powerful as any Old One would be, but then calling a hell goddess never sat right because no god is born in hell. At any rate, for what I'm achieving fallen angels worked best as since the Old Ones came after the Powers, that's really the best way to think of them. As for the redheaded Fallen, that was Tiamat. Fallen in hell basically have an indescribable form outside of physical appearance, I wasn't sure what appearance till give till last chapter, so there.
Also, for anyone wondering why the Knights of Byzantium aren't in this story, I have a theory about why they were relevant in the show. Dawn was created by a certain point, and the knights had used magic to detect when the Key was given human form. However, for my story, well Glory said she lost it eighteen years prior, which is how old Luna is, so you can use your imagination. For this story the knights were irrelevant as they had no real purpose here, and there wasn't much purpose for them in the show. Anyway, exposition is done. Enjoy this final chapter and review.
Calendar Residence
The next day...
The next morning arrived with a somber feel as the rays hit Xander's face. He stirred and opened his eyes to find Jenny still asleep with an oddly peaceful expression. His face took on a sad expression as he thought about what happened the previous night. He had let his guard down and someone he loves had fallen victim to a damned demon. 'Just like when Jesse died', Xander thought bitterly. He felt that he should've been stronger despite the fact that two fallen angels had been the ones to attack them. He could tell that the redheaded angel had been significantly weakened but still held great power. He could feel the anger boiling inside of him as he thought about everything he could've done to protect someone he loves. He stood up and looked out the window as he began to feel power coursing through them. He felt the energies that Luna described to him began to ebb and push. He charged his own power and it coursed through his body as if responding to Hell itself as his power had pushed back.
"I'll get you back Jenny. I swear on my soul," Xander declared.
Halliwell Mansion
Jenny sat with the sisters on their couch in the main living area looking around with curiosity and a somewhat childlike manner. The four sisters were close to her, using a spell to try and examine her mind to determine what exactly was wrong. Paige, for her part in the family, had been given a mind-reading ability thanks in part to Ariel, who had awakened the power after Xander and Prue found her. This, in conjunction with the spell, allowed them to sift through everything in the techno-pagan's mind. Paige tried fighting a blush as somewhere in the scattered mind were memories of the when she and Xander made love; something she didn't have in mind of finding. The youngest sister's eyes brightened as she finally saw the problem.
"I think I've got it," Paige said as everyone looked on.
"What is it?" Xander said as he moved closer to his friend.
"Whatever Glory had taken from Jenny's head was vital to her mind. That energy seemed to be the thing that held her mental faculties together. And without it..." Paige trailed off as she wasn't sure she wanted to finish the news.
"She's just like the mental patients at the hospital. That's what Glory did to every one of them. That also explains why more bodies haven't turned up since she got here," Xander contemplated as he thought about Luna's words.
"So this hell-bitch loses strength when she goes crazy, which happens over time?" Buffy asked as she got the details but needed to be sure.
"It seems so Buffy. The problem is knowing just how long it could take for it to happen," Luna explained.
"Yeah. Even if me, Xander, or Luna could go toe-to-toe with her, we don't know how long we could last," Jesse added.
"There has to be a way we can get to her that can weaken her and maybe get back the stolen psyches of every person she stole it from," Faith surmised. She looked to Xander who sat with Jenny, holding her hand. Her heart broke seeing him in the state he was. She thought back to the very first night they met, after he and the Scoobies before her had witnessed her abilities as a slayer. He told her about how he felt knowing he couldn't have saved Jesse the first time his old friend had died. The current situation had been just as bad as the Jenny she had come to know had been lost. The woman she had become good friends with seemed to a mere shadow of herself. Faith began thinking about a way they could strike Glory, while killing two birds with one stone. The only real x-factor was whether or not that fallen angel who accompanied Glory would show up.
"There might be a spell we can utilize that can unleash those energies that Glory stole. It's similar to how a memory spell would work except it gives back rather than takes," Tara said as she sat next to her Graham, holding his hand.
"Would a spell like that be able to restore the psyches of everyone?" Phoebe asked.
"Well, with enough of us surrounding her, we'd be able to pull it off. One person alone would run the risk of getting beaten half to death if Glory gets a hold of them," Amy added in.
"So what kind of strategy would work for this situation? We gotta expect she's got demons working for her. And if what Luna and Xander said is true, then it sounds like her plan is going down today," Forrest said.
"Then that means we can expect whoever was helping Glory to be there helping her. If Whistler or Ariel were here, we'd stand a better chance," Diana said.
"Won't have to worry about that. I've got you covered," came Whistler's voice as she appeared in a flash of light.
"Where have you been?" Xander asked as he looked up to his mentor.
"I've been busy trying to take care of some...things. But I'll have to tell you about them later. I was informed about the situation with Glory. The one you say helping her was Tiamat. He's clearly not messing around with this if he sent her along," Whistler explained to his charge.
"What do you mean?" Luna asked as she got a good look at the man who led her here. She could sense very well that he wasn't what he had heard he claimed himself to be. She could tell that he was much more powerful than he seemed and had an idea what he would be but chose not to comment on that.
"In hell, there are numerous dimensions that exist. Some dimensions are like alternate earths while others are in hell itself. Many of the half-breed demons, or cambions if you will, exist in demon dimensions that have been connected to Earth for billions of year but have been desolate. Every Old One resides in Hell, with different leaders. However, the top three are Samael, Nocalla, and their master, the one formerly known as the Source. There's been a major shift ruling powers with the First no longer in ruling power. Glory was one of the rulers of her domain in Hell after she fell. Her real name is Saleos. You'd never know her real name because not all of us -er them are named. Samael and Tiamat threw her out of her dimension. Why the Source would have Tiamat helping her now is beyond me," Whistler explained. Xander noticed the slip up and figured his idea on who his mentor was going to be confirmed sooner or later.
"Will you help us fight?" Xander asked. Whistler looked at the young man and knew for sure he'd have to reveal himself sooner or later. He had already revealed the nature of just who and what the Powers were as well as the existence of the Creator. He thought about the fate of the brothers that would come about in the years to come as they would be in much deeper than this group would ever be. He looked Xander in the eye and nodded. Xander smiled genuinely knowing that this would help them greatly.
"So first thing's first: where does this thing go down?" Xander asked.
"I can answer that. Normally, the center of this town, the high school's library, is the focal point where the portal would open up. This time, Saleos is performing this ritual in the warehouse district. She's gathering all of the people whose psyches she robbed to construct a tower. When Luna's blood spills, the power of the Key will activate and the barriers come down. She needs to be protected from Tiamat. That's where I come in," Whistler explained.
"Just how powerful are you?" Kendra asked sitting next to Forrest, with his arm wrapped around her shoulders.
"It's better that I should you. Close your eyes," Whistler said. Everyone shielded their eyes as Whistler enshrouded himself in a blinding light until it faded. Everyone looked at where he stood and looked in awe at who stood before them now. A man with blue robes, light skin, silver slicked-back hair, large silvery-white wings, and crystalline blue eyes stood before them. Jesse stepped forward toward the entity before them.
"It's nice to see you in this form, Sachiel," Jesse added, making everyone's mouths drop.
"Believe, I prefer this form than having to imitate that poor boy," Sachiel said as he thought of the one who he had relieved of duty from the Powers.
"Wait a sec, what do you mean imitate?" Angel asked.
"The Whistler you know isn't some demon. He's not even a full demon. His parents were a humanoid Old One and one of the Powers agents on earth. He's more of a nephilim than anything else, all things considered. Anyway, the Powers had contracted him to many duties throughout history, including Arthur pulling the sword from the stone. However, in truth, he's been weary of the Powers using him the way they have. Certain events in history were bound to happen. But in this day and age, it's important to allow mankind to make their own choices. The Powers have forgotten that. I had to step in to keep him from trying to supposedly evolve this world, which means over two billion people dying in the future. The Powers were meant to be righteous warrior angels of the Creator. But since they came to earth and mated with human women, they've become corrupt in their duties. They were going to use Whistler as another Antichrist so that they would remain in power. But I've stopped them," Sachiel explained.
"Is there anything they don't have their hands on?" Xander asked heatedly.
"Yes. You and Luna. When Father let me peer into the other universe, I saw what had happened and that there were many lines of fate drawn out for many of you. Most of you shouldn't be here but that is the gift of free will, that you are allowed to make your choices. Amazingly I saw many of those same lines drawn to you Xander. It seems the Powers never quite had a plan for you but kept you around. You would be one to keep everyone who should be here alive until such a time when those lines are cut. However, should anything have ever happened to you, well...you'd all be screwed," Sachiel added further. Everyone looked at the angel as if him using such vernacular was odd.
"Well, that explains it all doesn't it old friend?" came Gabriel's voice as he appeared in a cloud of smoke.
"Would you have explained it any other way?" Sachiel shot back jokingly. Gabriel smiled at the humor they threw back at each other. Everyone figured Sachiel had recruited Gabriel and chose not to ask,
"So how do we do this?" Riley asked.
"Gabriel will stay here and look after Luna. The rest of us will have to split into groups so we can catch these two off guard. Here's what we'll do," Xander said as everyone came together.
Exterior Abandoned Warehouse
Jenny walked into the open area where a metal tower was precariously built. She looked around muttering to herself as she looked around and saw the others like her constructing the tower with what appeared to be gray-skinned humanoids watching on. She felt a strange pull in her mind as if she was mentally battling between two impulses, one drawing her to run, and the other compelling her to stay. She spotted Glory and Tiamat surveying the area like hawks and she was filled with fear. She approached the tower with trepidation and stopped as she felt something that flowed through her. Glory made her way down next to Jenny and looked at her and sneered.
"Oh great. This is just unbelievably common. I should've known you'd be here. So where are your little friends?" Glory/Saleos sarcastically asked the techno-pagan. She was unprepared for the punch that sent her flying away from Jenny. As the fallen angel looked up, she saw herself surrounded by seven women and one man who were holding hands, chanting what sounded like a spell.
"We're right here, bitch," Xander responded as the magic users had raised their hands as a silvery white energy flowed around them and out from their hands. Glory had screamed as she felt the energies she absorbed leave her and flow back into her victims. The mental patients, and Jenny, all shook their heads and looked around seeing the demons fall into disarray. Jenny, however, was quicker in her reaction as she felt anger at the memories flowing through her mind. Glory had practically mind-raped her out of revenge and she saw the glimpses of Xander's face having a pained expression. Jenny looked at where the other spell-casters had surrounded the supposed deity and looked up as she saw Tiamat flying down to join the action. Almost as if on reflex, Jenny formed a whip of Shadow energy from her hand and struck the fallen angel. Everyone looked to see what she had done and were amazed. Jenny looked to everyone and smiled at their faces.
"Good to be back. So are we kicking ass or what?" Jenny said as she swung the whip at one of the humanoids that threatened to attack her from behind. The rest of the Scoobies had joined the fray as the spell-casters disbanded to help get the people out as fast of they could. Xander and Jesse stood face-to-face with Glory and Tiamat. Unfortunately, Tiamat flew off on her own before anything else could happen leaving Glory to shout obscenities at her former comrade. As she turned back around, she saw a punch from Jesse come for her which she failed to dodge. Glory fell to the ground in heap. She looked into Jesse's eyes and let out an ear-splitting scream as she launched herself at the young men only to be stopped by a barrier. Xander and Jesse saw the magic users chanting, creating a powerful barrier which Glory had raged inside of.
"Is it me or is this too easy?" Jesse asked.
"You're right. But we know where Tiamat went. She won't be getting back here soon," Xander said hoping everything worked out just fine.
Crawford Mansion
Luna paced in front of the fireplace in the living area. It had already been over half an hour sense the group had left and she wasn't sure she could take much more. Before she could think further, the sound of wings flapping caught her attention. The doors to the living area were blown open as Tiamat stepped through smiling smugly. Luna kept a stoic expression as she looked upon the age-old devil.
"Nice attempt at the bravado," she said walking to the young woman.
"I'm not faking," Luna said. Before Tiamat could respond, she was blasted with white light from behind Luna. Sachiel stepped out from hiding and zipped over to Tiamat.
"Well, it's been a long time brother," Tiamat said, sultrily.
"Not long enough," Sachiel said as a sword manifested in his right hand. Tiamat did the same and launched herself at the archangel. Tiamat attacked with everything she had, but her superior barely put forth any effort as he was gifted with much more power than his younger sibling. Luna had watched from behind a pillar as a fight between two angels would likely lead to her getting into more trouble. She had heard angels were fierce warriors but seeing it firsthand was phenomenal. She didn't think much longer on it as she sensed another dark presence enter and surround her. She barely let out a yelp before she saw blackness and was gone. Sachiel looked behind him and saw that the girl was no longer there and cursed himself for not having done more. He turned back to his sister, who was charging him. With speed that defied all the known human laws of physics, Sachiel stabbed his sister where a heart would be if she were human. Tiamat let out a scream as energy violently poured out before she exploded and sparks of light shimmered throughout the mansion. Having no time to think on much else, Sachiel disappeared from the mansion, cursing the fact that another unknown factor had interfered. Unfortunately, he was being called home, unknowing of the knowledge he would come into in the future.
Abandoned warehouse/dimensional hub
The Scoobies had regrouped as the plan seemed to be working better than they hoped. However, Xander was still on edge as he had an odd feeling something was off. The results were too easy to achieve and not even the battle at their high school graduation went this smoothly, as plenty were at least injured. His train of thought was cut short as he sensed a third dark power that didn't register before. The others with attuned senses felt the same thing as they all looked skyward to see Luna at the top of the tower with another fallen angel facing her, with a silver blade, as if the stab her. Not wasting any time, Xander immediately began climbing the tower as fast as his power allowed him.
Luna backed away to the edge of the platform. She was feeling fear for the second time in her life. The emotion was fairly foreign to her as she had felt fear briefly before coming into the use of her powers. She wasn't sure she could take an angel that was able to take her without so much as gaining Sachiel's attention. She was unaware that the angel before her was just as powerful. She barely flinched as she felt the blade pierce her abdomen but not hitting any organs. She felt pain as she couldn't grasp the fact that that she was being injured in such a way. She looked down to see droplets of blood drip from the blade and through the grated platform and down towards the surface. However, in mid-air, the blood had hit what seemed like an invisible barrier and began crackling with energy, which spread out further.
Xander was nearing the highest platform of the tower when he saw the barrier being dissolved all around him. He started to see dark red skies cover the town and what appeared to be some Old Ones in the horizon. Xander pushed his energy past his normal limits as he continued scaling the structure with a speed and dexterity that would make King Kong envious of this feat. He had finally gotten to the highest platform where he saw the fallen angel standing before Luna. Xander summoned the sword that Sachiel had given him while the angel summoned his own.
"Who are you?" Xander questioned.
"Vassago. You won't last much longer against me boy. Sachiel may have trained you, but you're still human," the fallen had replied. Xander had lunged with a stabbing motion, which Vassago had readily parried. Xander tried for a horizontal swing followed by a downward strike. Vassago had guarded against both and countered with a powerful swing which Xander deflected but the reverberation had shook his entire body. He could tell that this angel was just about as powerful as Sachiel. However, he had too much to lose. Xander charged his entire body with his power, giving him a crackling blue-green aura. He charged the fallen angel again, this time with each swing matching each other. However, Xander realized that he didn't have much time as the portal was growing by the minute. Forming a plan in his mind, Xander charged Vassago once more with their blades meeting once more. However, Xander grabbed the angel's wrist and spun them around so that his back was to Luna. Xander kicked the angel away and lunged his sword at him, piercing his abdomen. Vassago looked up and grinned evilly before he burst in an explosion of energy that shimmered before fading. Xander heard the flapping of wings before Ariel stood before him.
"This portal needs to be closed now. But any blood Luna would willingly lose won't be enough," Ariel said.
"So what do we do?" Luna said approaching the two, trying to heal the stomach wound.
"Someone with enough power could charge their bodies and jump into the vortex while I use my powers to seal it. The resulting clash will create a means by which I can reseal the barriers," Ariel explained.
"I'll do it. Glory used me to pen it. I should be the one to- agh!" Luna said before she was knocked unconscious by Xander. Before she fell, Xander caught her in his arms.
"I'm not letting her do that. She's only just started to realize her potential. Can you get her down there?" Xander asked the female angel. Ariel nodded and took Luna out of his arms and flew her down to the surface.
Faith looked up to see Ariel carrying her sister in her arms as she flew down to meet them. Faith took her sister and held her looking at the angel.
"What's going on?" Faith asked.
"Xander and I are going to close the portal. But we have to leave for a while. I can promise you we'll be back. It'll be some time but we will return," Ariel said before flying back up to the top with Xander. The young man in question had charged his body with all of the power he had gained since he acquired it.
"A word of warning: you may not like where we're going to end up," Ariel said.
"If Angel can survive Hell, who says I can't?" Xander says determinedly.
"You won't be going to Hell. But you won't like the destination all the same. Now go!" Ariel shouted. Xander wasted no time as he jumped into the opening vortex of energy. He could already feel himself being torn at by the vortex that was being created. However, he wasn't dying. He remained where he was as he felt the energy surround him, trying to consume him. He felt another type of energy surround him, which was Ariel using her power to reverse the process which prevented Xander from dying. The pain remained as a side effect. As the Scoobies stared on at the sight, they saw Ariel fly towards Xander, as her physical form was surrounded with a heavenly glow. When she got close to Xander, she grabbed onto him and the light grew brighter. Everyone shileded their eyes as the intensity grew to be too much. Suddenly, everything grew dark again. Everyone opened their eyes to find that they were still on Earth but Xander and Ariel were gone.
"They did it," Jenny said somberly. She heard what Ariel said about her and Xander being gone and immediately felt tears come to her eyes. For the second time in her life, she would be without Xander. Only this time, he would be gone for much longer. Faith herself almost broke down as she felt the same way Jenny did.
"Damn you all. I was so close," came Glory's voice, which sounded grave as her power faded. She was stuck in mid-shift as her powers had waned heavily. She now looked to be a cross of Ben and the strawberry-blonde woman she masqueraded as. Faith handed her sister to Jenny who quickly took the girl in her arms. The dark-haired slayer picked up a sword that a servant of the weakened entity had dropped earlier and continued her stride to the enemy. She stopped as she got a good look at the thing that almost ended the world.
"You kidnap my sister, mind rape my friend, and to top it off, you nearly kill us all, even knowing what would happen. And that human you're riding shotgun with is no better. I won't let you do this ever again," Faith said through gritted teeth. She raised the sword with the blade's tip pointed down. She plunged the blade deep into the demon's heart, killing her and her unwilling host. Faith let go of the sword, dropped to her knees and openly wept for everything she could've lost and what she ahd lost, even if it was temporary.
The remaining Scoobies had gathered around the young woman as she let down her emotional barrier in front of everyone she had called friend.
Mid January
Sunnydale, California
Dimension A
Xander and Ariel had fallen through the portal carrying them through dimensions right back into Sunnydale. Ariel held onto him as she gently glided down to the surface and landed safely. They both looked around and Xander knew something was off about Sunnydale. Some of the shops that should be in business didn't even seem to exist. However, the fact that demons weren't running amok meant that the hellmouth had not opened.
"This is weird," Xander said, mostly to himself.
"I said you wouldn't like where we'd end up. If it helps, we are near the bronze," Ariel said before they heard a loud crash echo in the night. Xander took off in the direction of Sunnydale's only club with Ariel trailing lightly behind him, oddly enough on foot. Xander entered the club from the rear entrance as he felt two distinct and familiar powers inside the building. He snuck in hoping to catch whatever was causing the commotion off guard. He heard and crash and looked near the stage to see two people falling through. The first one to rise was a vampire. Xander jumped into action to save whoever fell through with it, leaping onto the stage. Xander delivered a left and right hook to the vampire, who spun around, his back facing the young man. Xander kicked the back of it's knee making it fall, while Xander grabbed it's head, twisting and then tearing it off the body, making it dust immediately.
Xander looked down at the person he saved only to find Buffy staring up at him in shock. However, taking in her appearance, he noticed that she was a few years younger than when he last saw her. Not only that, but the Bronze had not been remodeled.
"Xander," came the familiar voice of Willow, catching his attention. As he turned to the dancefloor, he immediately noticed that there was another him standing next to Jenny. With Jesse standing with them. Giles, Amy and Jonathan also stood in the center of the floor gaping shock at what they were seeing. Xander saw the presents on the table, including a familiar wooden box and his eyes grew wide in horror. While certain details of events were clearly different than he remembered, he knew this night as the most memorable night of his life: the night of Buffy's seventeenth. The night that the nightmare known as Angelus would be unleashed. One thought came to mind for Xander.
"Oooh shit."
Author's end note: I normally don't post these at the end of chapters in my stories but I felt it necessary. The reason that Ariel told Xander she needed someone with enough power was because it took psychic energy to bring the barriers down and would take psychic energy to reverse and mend. It's psychic energy that Xander and Luna are using with their abilities in this story. Ariel being an archangel would have the power capable of being able to reverse or mend this kind of stuff. Also, if you feel the story is rushed, I apologize but most of season 5's story arc didn't seem as widely used as it should've been. And I've already gone over my rant about Glory's ranking in Hell. And to see what happens to Xander, keep reading my other story, Lords of Shadow: Sunnydale. Once that's finished, then the next saga in Hand of Fate will begin. Until then, read, review, and enjoy.
