Chapter 14
April 21, 2033
San Angeles (8:55pm)
Swaddled against Kayla's chest, Katya naps comfortably as they sit outside the Great Crater Bar and Grill. With a mariachi band playing next door, Faith, Willow, and Tara sat outside on the patio admiring how the once repressive city was slowly regaining its southwest flair. Faith easily persuaded the waitress to give them a private corner. As drinks are served, they patiently wait until a young woman clad in a fashionable business suit arrives and the waitress points them out to her. Toting a long steel case, her firm serious expression matches her sharp and deliberate movements. With her dark auburn locks restrained by a tight ponytail, Faith notes her expensive watch and designer heels which scream for attention. The sharp cracks from her footfalls give her the impression of a military officer or Stormtrooper. With a forced smile, she acknowledges everyone at the table until she sees Kayla, and Faith sees a flicker of apprehension flash across her face. She clears her throat as she addresses Faith and Willow.
"I thought this would be a private meeting. I can reschedule again to a better time?"
Willow squeezes Tara's hand as she bites her tongue and Faith shakes her head.
"No. This is a good time and place. Have a seat, we're safe here. This is…"
She coldly nods to Kayla and Tara, and warmly shakes Faith's and Willow's hand.
"Yes, I'm quite familiar with Ms. Rosenberg's work in witchcraft. It is an esteemed honor. My Name is Christine Carter, and I represent a private firm who wishes to remain anonymous while providing maximum support. Well, if this is the best we can do, I present you with one piece of the artifact."
Snapping the latches open on the metal case, she presents it to Faith. Reaching inside, Faith extracts a 37 inch long shaft made of wood and iron. The polished metal shaft felt unreal in her hand, like the sensation she got holding a poisonous snake. Running her fingers over the metal shaft, she discerns the small holes through the shaft spaced strategically for function and purpose. Toting it beside her, she is perplexed seeing a wooden stake mounted at the bottom end and gently sets it back in its resting place.
"It has had many names over the past three thousand years but it is simply referred to as the Slayer's Scythe. Our firm has desperately been trying to regain the head piece; and if all goes well, we should have the blade here in two days."
Faith nods and examines the rod. Taken back by the extreme weight of the rod, she tentatively hands it to Kayla who examines it closely. Tara notes the way Christine cringes seeing Kayla handle the item, and logs it for later. Kayla clears her throat and glides her finger across the stake in the scythe.
"Do you know what kind of wood is this?"
Christine shrugs.
"Our best experts are stumped. We know the wood should have rotted away thousands of years ago, but it is as if it was mounted there just recently. It has not dried out nor can be scratched without damaging the weapon. It's some sort of ancient oak from a breed of tree now extinct. It's as hard as iron, and has never needed to be polished or repaired. The entire weapon has never rusted or suffered from any kind of corrosion. We know the metal is from a meteorite, it has a distinct metallurgic signature. It is truly awesome...an item given to us by the gods themselves."
Kayla clears her throat.
"God himself."
Everyone pauses to stare at Kayla who has no discomfort saying what's on her mind.
"This is a piece of a powerful holy item which only a god-like being could have produced. The simple act of me handling it without suffering any ill effects says much about whom and for whom it was made. Only a handful of beings could have produced this item, and it is truly a work of art."
Christine eyes her suspiciously before finally breaking the heavy silence left by Kayla's words.
"None the less, it is a powerful artifact which should be made whole. We should have the head-piece soon, and I will contact you as soon as it arrives. If you will excuse me?"
She stands and hurriedly exits the restaurant leaving the foursome staring numbly into their drinks.
Exiting the bedroom, Kayla gently shuts the door and tightens her robe.
"She's finally asleep, definitely a night owl like all slayers. The wood is unique alright. I recognized it immediately when I touched it. It was crafted from a branch of the tree of life. It is the one thing which can kill, if not destroy, a pure demon if you hit him just right. If there was ever a weapon specifically made for a vampire slayer, then this is it. As I mentioned before, slayers and their business is one which I kept far away from, so I have no info on this thing. I heard rumors of a slayer super weapon, but it was myth as far as I was concerned. It wasn't my business, so I never bothered to look into it. Sorry."
Willow clears her throat suddenly.
"Well, I'm just as stumped. Whoever crafted this weapon managed to keep it a secret from everyone, including us Wiccans. The Tree of Life? Are you sure?"
Kayla nods as she rests her gaze on the weapon. Moving aside for Faith to sit as she returns from the shower, Kayla finally breaks her stare and lets her woman take her place in front of her.
"God has only allowed a few pieces to drift into the hands of man since creation. This is the first time I've actually seen one crafted into a weapon as this. Mythology from when I was young said the angel Michael had a curved sword crafted from the same tree to do battle against the great evil's minions. Just brushing against this weapon destroyed evil's forces. He later had a great sword crafted from star-iron, but he always kept that first wooden weapon tied on his back…just in case. Vampires have been around far too long, and have been a constant blight on humanity. I've had my run-ins with them, and they never get to talk about it unless they turn the other way and run really fast. Michael lent me that wooden sword when we were told to destroy Ubar. An ancient demon was hiding under the city, and God ordered everything cleansed. Demons aren't just unstoppable fighting machines, but a formidable source of corruption to all living creatures. I can't tell you how many half and nearly full demons were encamped in that area. We started the battle just before nightfall, and didn't leave the valley until after midday the following day. In the old days, I was very busy. Nowadays, I deal with what life presents me. I don't have to go far to find trouble."
Tara fidgets nervously digesting Kayla's story and finally inhales sharply before she exhales her own words forcibly.
"Seeing that we're being so honest and forthcoming…I have to admit that I was doing some research about…about you. I feel bad about it now, but I had to know exactly what they knew about you and…make sure your story kind of checked out. You know?"
Faith raises her eyebrow at the witch, and Kayla could feel the tension building in Faith's body. Clearing her throat, she lays her hand on Faith's shoulder and replies.
"And what did you find out? It's okay, it's very sensible thing to do. So tell us what your prestigious Watcher's Council has to say about me?"
Tara and Willow exchange looks nervously and Willow finally breaks the silence.
"Well, they said you were not truly human, and that you typically didn't get involved in human affairs. You were a kind of supernatural creature who wasn't truly evil but not someone who worked for the betterment of humanity either."
Kayla nods while chewing on their description.
"Well, that's almost accurate because I am protecting humanity by not getting involved in your development, and preventing evil from destroying or enslaving the human race."
Willow sighs loudly. "There's more though. They…warned us to not get too close to you, and that we should try and get Katya away from you and to England. They felt Katya was best to be raised by a good watcher family."
Tara practically screams out before Faith could sit up.
"BUT we have no intention in doing that! They are crazy to try and do that, and even crazier to think that we would even follow an order like that. I would never take a child from her mother! You're the best person to be Katya's mother, and we would never intrude in that bond."
Willow stands to continue where Tara leaves off.
"We think that's who was working behind the scenes to try and take Katya since day one. With that knowledge we have been able to predict some of the tactics they could try. Legally, they no longer have any way to take her, which leaves them illegal avenues. Tara and I have been trying to find some magic which could prevent them from just kidnapping her, but it's not that easy."
Tara nods enthusiastically as she continues for them.
"We think we can make an alarm against anyone who approaches her with ill intent, but it's not an easy form of magic to work. It's easy to make them against evil, undead, or anything of that nature, but it's not always effective against regular people."
Kayla turns to Faith and says matter-of-factly, "That's why humans should never have learned to play with magic." She laughs to herself and continues. "This coming from the person who spent a few weeks learning how to do magic with Lacey, but magic is generally a bad idea. No offense to you all, it's just my opinion. With that said, I remember hearing about an old type of family magic which protected the family. I wish I could tell you more, but like I said magic wasn't my thing really. Yes I learned an anti-pregnancy spell, but that's really nothing compared to what we are talking about here. Look into spells which protect the family and home, it might be there. That damn demon seed really screwed me up. It messed up my memory, messed up my system, and cut my connection with the universe. It put a mental fog over my mind which I really forgot who and what I was. It made it seem like my history was a delusional dream, a creation of my own imagination. When I find that S.O.B. demon, he'll learn the definition of damnation. Well, with that said, thank you for coming clean. Next, what can I do to help?"
Willow and Tara look at each other stumped. Wanting to pry further about the demon and why he didn't recognize her as the Child of Light, Tara decides to file it away for another day.
"Well…we really don't know. When we can get something up and going, you'll be the first to know."
Faith shrugs equally confounded. "This is all just too much for me to take in. I can't say that this new group is such a bad thing. The Watcher's Counsel hasn't been much help lately; and if the new guys are supplying me with a better weapon, I won't refuse the help."
Kayla whispers privately into Faith's ear as Willow and Tara discuss the magic options between them.
"Faith, be careful on what gifts you accept from strangers…sometimes the price is far more than it is ever worth."
In a fifty-story office complex in north Las Vegas surrounded by three identical towers only forty stories high, Dr. Edith McGovern reviews the meeting her agent completed an hour prior. With the satellite uplink providing an efficient means of sending and receiving the video recording of the meeting, she enjoys a front-row seat to the entire event. Studying the expressions and subtle nuances the group gave, she takes mental notes on how well they received the weapon. With her trusted counsel seated alongside her, Edith preferred to view the entire event before allowing any conversation or opinions thrown around the table. As the meeting ends and her agent rises to depart, smiles knowingly. With the recording ending, the table immediately begins whispering between them, and Edith motions for the glasses to be filled and their meeting to begin officially. Starting with her right, she motions to begin. A scarred and muscular woman in her mid-forties takes a sip of her bottled water before speaking.
"Well that could have gone worse, but didn't. That elder is a pain in the ass. She knows too damn much, if you ask me. Whenever she asked a question, it was like she already knew the answer."
Edith laughs with a hearty chuckle. "Yah, I got that too Cynthia. She knows all too well that's wood from the tree of life."
The room of nine women make tactical estimates of the meeting one after another, telling their opinions of how to counter anything the Elder suggests. The next to last lady seated after the redhead Delores, a short-haired chestnut officer fifteen years younger than everyone in the room shakes her head. "I admit I don't have much experience in dealing with demi-gods, but I don't get the negative vibes from her that you all do. Yes, she is a smart-ass. Yes, she knows a hell of a lot more than all of us combined, but I don't see her as a threat as everyone else does."
As the room begins to turn on their youngest counselor, added to their rollcall just a year prior, Edith immediately silences the pack and allows Gloria Evers to continue with her thoughts. She notices the subtle tell of relief as she resumes.
"She's a mother caring for an infant daughter; her wife is a powerful being in her own right, and when they stand together against the darkness nothing can defeat them. I'm jealous of them. If I had been lucky enough to have been called instead of Katya, I too would be dead now, so I'm not suicidal. I, like Colonel Benson beside you Edith, were potentials and just never got called upon. Any one of us could have been called and would more than likely be dead by now. What this elder brings to the table is an ultra-powerful skill-set which we can utilize to further our cause. We have effectively shut down the watchers counsel after thousands of years of interference, and this much feminine power is now focused to our cause. If we make her into our enemy, or worse, we become her enemy through our actions, you might as well hand this power back over to the watchers."
Seeing her words strike discord with the rest of her counsel, Edith recognizes why she assigned her to her leadership team. Edith nods appreciatively and bows to her wisdom. "What do you suggest Gloria?"
Recognizing she's surrounded by a table of wolves, she swallows dryly before speaking. "First, we need to protect the Elder's daughter. Yes, it would be best for her to be raised by a human family with the wisdom that she will become a slayer, but in this context, it would be best to let the Elder raise her and gain the knowledge and wisdom that she will instill in her. We don't have anyone like that on our team, and we are in a severe disadvantage. Second, we need to have the Elder assist in unlocking the magic to empower all potentials, not just the one single slayer. If she does it, we have a greater chance of success than without. Lastly, we need to make sure it's THEIR idea to unlock the power and not ours. If they catch wind that it was ours from day one, the jig is up and it won't happen.
Edith nods approvingly and dismisses the counsel. As Gloria is the last to leave, Edith motions for her to stay. Beside Gloria, Danielle Gibbons whispers into Gloria's ear as she passes. "She always said to speak your mind, but DAMN girl."
Shooting her best friend an annoying glare, she takes her seat and waits for the conference room doors to reseal.