Author: Lucinda
fourteenth in the "Bright Star" series
main characters are Faith and Adam Peirson
Rated t for teen, violence, sexuality and strong language
Disclaimer: anyone you recognize does not belong to me, though I may not be able to give all the legal who's that do own them.
Distribution: by permission.
Notes: post s7 for BtVS. As is usual, :words in colons: are over a telephone.
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Faith was in the middle of stretching when her cell phone rang. She almost let it go to voicemail, except that there was only one reason that her phone would be ringing 'Every Breath You Take.' She'd programmed it to use the stalker-song for the special calls from the Watcher's Council - that is, from Giles, Xander, Willow, or Dawn. And it only used that ringtone when they used the special magic-encryption that Willow had devised to make sure things were as eavesdropping and tracking proof as the techno-witch could manage. Needless to say, they didn't use that encryption all the time, and a regular call would ring in with the default ringtone, which was an energetic techno selection this month.
Hoping that it was Giles with some useful information, she answered, "Faith here."
:You left a message demanding that I contact you,: Giles sounded as if he was trying hard not to be annoyed. :I hope that it is something of importance to merit such tones?:
"Yeah, yeah... remember I asked about the gorgeous demons with the fangs and solid eyes? There's a bit more to it than rumors of them about town," Faith began. She didn't want to dump everything on him in the first ten seconds, that would only lead to him rubbing his glasses and muttering Britishisms.
:The efreet. You'd be astonished how often they get described in such a manner. I do hope that they aren't causing problems, some of them have terrible magical powers. Several theories have linked them with the legends of Djinn...: there was a pause, and she could hear Giles sigh. :Tell me what happened, Faith.:
"One of them kidnapped me. He had at least half a dozen followers, and they can have different colored eyes than just orange. He knew I was a Slayer and wanted to keep me locked up and out of his way, I guess so he could go ahead with whatever plot he had goin' on," Faith was frowning at her fingernail, thinking that it looked a bit off. Had she managed to bruise under the nail on her last patrol?
:Oh dear... You wouldn't be calling me from your phone if you were still in captivity, would you? What else happened?:
"Adam came to rescue me. Turns out he's pretty handy in a fight, good with a sword..." Faith wasn't certain if she should mention his Immortality to Giles. It wasn't her secret to pass about. "The thing is, those efreet guys kept getting back up."
:The books mention them doing that. They are apparently very difficult to kill:
"Turns out that cutting off their heads works pretty well," Faith countered. "Except that it seems to be having some sort of effects. Weird ones. I need you to help me figure out what's happening to me."
There was a pause, and what might have been the sound of a teacup being put down on a saucer. :What sort of side effects do you mean?:
Faith tried to figure out the best way to start. Should she begin with the vampires attempting to toy with her? The periods of weakness and lightheadedness? The changes in how fast she healed? Biting back a few choice curses, she dropped the main problem like an anvil, "It's doing something to my Slayer-ness."
There was silence for a count of fifteen and then Giles began swearing. She could pick out the Sumerian about being buggered by diseased donkeys, and the Latin about blunt swords and shields made of grass, but there were other parts that she couldn't figure out at all. A few Gaelic words about festering, frozen and darkness.
"Very creative. My own swearing doesn't include nearly that many languages," Faith was impressed.
:Give me specifics. Everything that you're certain is connected, and then what you suspect is connected,: Giles demanded.
"Like I said, we had to fight our way out of there. When one of us cut their heads off there was this crazy miniature lightning kind of thing. It stung, but not as bad as a tazer, and it had these weird images of places I hadn't been. Both of us had the hell beat out of us before we got home," Faith paused, remembering the morning after. "I was fine by morning. Not even any bruises."
:Was that within the normal healing process? Do continue.:
"It was a couple days after that that I felt weird when I woke up. Sort of lightheaded. When I patrolled that night, the vamps tried to play with me, like they would some random person. And they felt like they were hitting really hard," Faith paused, and then added, "Except that it turns out they were just normal vamps. I wasn't very strong that night."
:Have there been any strange marks that you couldn't explain? Especially small bruises?:
There was also a bit of muttering that sounded as if she wasn't supposed to hear it. Something about a drug and a cruise… No, that couldn't be right. No way Giles would be muttering threats involving cruises with men on them. "No weird marks. Not funky bruises, not weird stripes or spots or not a tattoos, nothing changing color. The part that doesn't make sense is that when I feel light and weak, and the vamps don't seem to react like I'm a Slayer, it seems to change how my presence feels. And I heal faster then than I do the rest of the time. Then it feels like it swings back and I feel all crazy Slayer-like, and I can't wait 'till dark to go slay some vamps."
:You're healing faster when weaker than when you feel normal? That… that doesn't make sense. If that's the case, then it isn't…: Giles stopped before he explained what it couldn't be. :Hmmm. Perhaps if I focus on things that accelerate the healing process…:
"There's been no rituals that either of us were present for. No magic amulets or charms or big boxes. No chanting or trying to cast spells," Faith wanted to say that Adam was as confused about this as she was. Except that he said he had an idea, something that he wasn't certain about.
She could still hear Giles muttering over the phone. :…focused manipulation…. No, not chamomile…. Invocation of the Hunter? No, she would have noticed that… Essence of the demon?:
"Whoa, whoa, whoa… there was no essence being exchanged! I was chained up, but that's it!" Faith interrupted.
:Essence of the demon does not always refer to sexual contact,: Giles retorted. :From what you've said, those miniature lightnings were a form of essence. The essential life essence of the demons. There are rumors of another sort of being with those lightnings, sometimes referred to as demons and sometimes presumed some sort of magical martial artists. Those individuals don't seem to age, or sicken. While most of their actions are a mystery, they sometimes engage in ritual combat, ending with the decapitation of the loser. Blue lightnings emerge from the loser's body and are primarily absorbed by the winner. Speculation is that those lightnings are the loser's life essence and power.:
"Heard about them," Faith admitted. She didn't want to explain that she'd heard all about the Immortals from Adam, or why he knew so much. "I hadn't considered that sort of essence. But that still doesn't tell me what's going on or why I keep feeling weak. I haven't felt that weak since before I was the Slayer."
:I do know that there are several species of demons that reproduce by infection. What I don't know off the top of my head is if efreets are among those species. I will need to do some additional research on them…. Are you absolutely certain that there's no other potential cause?:
"If there's anything else responsible, then it's something that can work without any direct contact," Faith insisted.
:Be careful. Stay alert for any additional signs that things might be out of the ordinary, and I will get back in touch after I've done more research on the efreet.:
"Sure thing. You'll e happy to know that I've been studying and practicing. I found a good teacher for old languages, and Adam's been helping me with my sword work," Faith smirked into the phone.
:Which old languages?:
"I could follow most of the Sumerian you were snarling. Nasty stuff with the donkeys… do I want to know where you learned that from? I've also been working on my Latin and I can swear in Turkish," Faith decided not to tell Giles that compared to Adam, who'd actually learned Sumerian as a living language, that he had a weird accent.
:Turkish?: Giles sounded curious now.
"Yeah, but all I can do so far is swearing and asking for coffee," Faith admitted.
Giles laughed at that.
Hanging up the phone, Faith felt a little better. Giles had to find something – he was used to finding obscure stuff fast to keep things from going disastrous. He'd survived over a Hellmouth, he'd out-planned Mayor Wilkins. Between Giles, Joe, herself, and Adam, they had to find an answer. She just hoped that the answer wouldn't be 'too bad, you're dying.'
End Bright Star 14: Starlight Advice