(Author's notes: Sorry for the lateness of this part but I have been having a bad case of writers block and also I wanted to make sure these last few parts were enjoyable.
By David Mycock Portals and Dimensions 26
Walking the Path
Disclaimer: I do not own Buffy the vampire slayer or any other of the characters in this story they belong to Joss Whedon and whoever else created the characters used in this story. Any characters I created I own.
Pairing: Janna Kalderdash/Xander Harris (There will be other relationships in this story but this is the main one)
Summary: Two days after the end of the first story Xander and his friends arrive in L.A to meet up with Vlad Tepes Lawyers not knowing the adventure awaiting them and the changes it would bring within the group.
(Dark Dimension)
Xander concentrated as he listened to Lilith instruct him in some meditation exercises to help keep a tighter reign on his emotions, Tara was reading one of the books that had been given her by the charmed ones. They had decided to stay awake for the time being until they trusted these versions of their allies.
They were all on edge after hearing the history on this dimension and were concerned the alternate Giles would not be able to convince the rest of his side the truth about their origins which meant they may try and kill Xander.
"I think that will do for tonight Alexander" Lilith finally told him as he mastered the last exercise she had been teaching "You are tired, both of you are sleep I will keep watch as I do not need as much sleep as you" she added
"Are you sure?" Xander asked as he tried to fight a yawn
"I am, now sleep" she answered with a smile and watched as they both climbed into the two cots which were in the room before turning the light off and turning to face the door
Across the hall Giles was feeling a headache coming on as his friends continued to argue about the appearance of a man who was for all intense and purpose Alexander Harris, most wanted to kill him outright even after they had been assured he was not the man who had helped turn Sunnydale and L.A into hell
"Silence" Aura finally snapped silencing everyone "No one is going to kill anyone, that is not our Harris Giles has checked his aura and it does not match ours which means he was telling the truth about coming from an alternate dimension" she told them heatedly "They have done nothing to harm us and you are all acting just like the people we are trying to defeat" she added with a glare
"But Aura?" a man of middle height with dark skin and brown eyes tried to argue
"No Gunn I am serious, we will not touch this Harris or his friends" Aura spat beginning to get fed up "They may be able to help whilst they are here, if not then they can still stay here until the portal they say will open does so" she continued "We cannot win a war by acting like our enemy" she finished
"Aura is correct, if we act like Faith and our Harris then we become no better than them and in the end they win because they have brought us down to their level" Wesley Price informed them with a tired look in his eyes
"Angel you can't be buying this crap?" another of the gathered group asked this one had dark hair and green eyes
"Giles is positive Doyle that these people are not from our dimension as we know for a fact that dimensional travel is possible" Angel answered "I don't like the fact that we have a Xander Harris inside this building but he has not committed the crimes our Harris has and from what their friend Tara said the Xander from her own dimension helped bring Faith and the Mayor down" he continued "Which means we can't judge every Harris by what ours has done because there is every chance there is a dimension where we go dark and kill friends and family and try and destroy the world" he finished with a brooding expression on his face as he remembered his past
"Angel is correct, in every dimension things happen differently from our own and that means there is every chance there is a dimension where we are the ones trying to destroy what we are fighting so hard to protect" Giles said with a thoughtful look
This silenced everyone in the room as they thought over what the souled vampire and watcher had said, none of them wanted to admit they were right but knew they were anyway
"So what do we do Giles?" a young woman with brown hair and blue eyes asked, she was the youngest of the group and usually kept quite during these discussions
"For now we get some sleep and tomorrow we will meet with our guest and see if they can offer any help" Giles answered
"Giles" a shout echoed from outside before the door was flung open and one of their spies entered
"What is it, what's wrong?" Giles asked wondering why he had broken cover
"Harris and Faith are on their way to L.A, somehow they know about the visitors" the man said as he fought to recapture his breathe "I overheard Willow speaking with one of her council, we got to get out of here" he added
"No we stay" a new voice said from behind them and everyone turned to see Xander and his friends enter "We were coming to warn you that an attack is coming and overheard what your friend said" Xander added
"How do you know an attack is coming?" Gunn demanded to know
"The bond between me and Tara has heightened our magical senses and it's given us the ability to sense oncoming attacks, we also sometimes have visions" Xander explained
"And we're supposed to believe you" Gunn said with a growl wanting nothing more than to kill the man before them
"If you want our help then yes, but the Harris of your dimension is mine to deal with" Xander answered trying to stay calm "He is a stain on everything I have fought to save and he must die, as he is me in almost every way then I will deal with him" he added with as much confidence as he could
"What makes you think you can handle this version of you Alexander?" Giles asked somewhat surprised by his words
"I know the truth of who I am and what I can do, I doubt very much this one does" Xander replied facing the watcher
"What do you mean by that?" Aura inquired
"My true name is Alexander Lavelle son and heir to the Lavelle tribe and I am also the bearer of the sword of Vlad Tepes" Xander answered as he pulled Vlad's sword from its scabbard
"You cannot be series?" Wesley said with a pale face at the mention of the undead king's name
"I'm deadly series" Xander answered "I found out as we were dealing with Angelus the truth about my birth origins and located the sword which Janna had kept" he explained "I somehow find it hard to believe your version of me has Vlad's sword" he added
"He doesn't, I have the sword" Giles answered "I took it as a reminder of Jenny" he added as he fought the memories of his lost love
Xander quickly bottled his feelings of anger as he heard Giles answer as it meant Janna had died in this dimension like she had in Tara's home dimension, he felt Tara take his hand in his and he quickly turned away from the dark thoughts
"I would suggest Mr Giles you hide that sword, if your Harris ever claims it he will become an even worse enemy and one you will find most difficult to kill" Lilith warned the watcher
"What makes the sword so dangerous?" Angel inquired
"It is forged with the ancient magic of the Romany people and if used without control you could destroy cities with it" Lilith explained "However only people with Romany blood can wield the sword and nearly all of them would never use the sword for such things" she continued "The man who stole the leadership of the Lavelle tribe would however use it to destroy and so would your Alexander" she finished
"So that means Harris is Romany correct?" Wesley asked for clarification
"He is, as am I" Lilith answered
She had decided to be as honest as they could but she had no intention of revealing her status as the daughter of Vlad Tepes, there was already too much hatred in this room and she did not want to add any more fuel to the fire
"Very interesting, however this is not the time for a history lesson we have plans to make" Giles finally said after a few minutes "We except your help, it will not be easy but maybe if we can kill Faith, Willow and our Harris we can break the barrier with a joint magical assault on it" he informed everyone
"How many of you have magical talents?" Tara asked as she thought over Giles's plan
"Including myself and Wesley five" Giles responded
"Now you have eight as all of us can do magic, but that will have to wait until we have dealt with our enemies" Xander told them "We better start planning how to handle this and do it quickly some how I do not believe we have long once Faith and your Harris arrive" he stated
"You are correct let us begin" Giles said and everyone settled down to listen
(Other Realm)
Cassandra watched as Xander prepared to deal with his worst nightmare come true, she was happy to learn that this dark version of Alexander had not learnt the truth of his birth origins or located the sword of her husband. This gave Alexander and his friends and allies an edge in the coming fight, she could tell Lilith was just as uneasy about the history of this version of Alexander and she again wondered what her step daughter's true feelings for him were
She almost jumped as Tanith finally reappeared to stand beside her as she and their lord continued to watch, she could see the uneasy and worried look Tanith wore and again wondered what was wrong with him
"My lord, with your permission the majority of the powers would like to speak with you and Cassandra about the current situation" Tanith finally spoke
"Is it important Tanith?" their lord asked as he tried to concentrate and watch for any signs for the real hands behind the ambush which had sent Alexander and Lilith through the portal
"Yes my lord it is vital" Tanith responded knowing what he was doing was breaking every oaf he and the others had taken when they had become members of the powers that be but it had been decided that they had to come forward after one of their members had overheard Malek's plan to attack Alexander and Lilith directly when the portal opened once more and it had become clear their leader had lost his mind if he could even contemplate this action
"Very well, bring them and speak" their lord ordered
"As you order my lord" Tanith replied feeling more nervous than he had in over three hundred years
Cassandra watched as Tanith returned with Jonas and nearly the entire core of the powers that be, it was clear something was indeed going on if they were here without Malek their current head
(Home Dimension Sunnydale)
Janna followed behind Alucard and Adrian as they headed to where the Hellsing team had located the cult who had ambushed Alexander and Lilith and she fought to keep her emotions in check. Sarah was beside her and looked just as worried as she felt and she knew why, if they failed to keep the three leaders of the cult alive then they would never retrieve Alexander and Lilith.
"Don't worry Janna, we won't fail" Amy said from beside her causing her to face the young witch with a raised eyebrow in question "I could read what you were thinking by the look on your face" Amy told her "You can't let yourself think such things, I do not believe Alex would even contemplate not seeing you ever again or to be there for the birth of your child" Amy added
"I know Amy, I just don't seem to have as much control over my thoughts anymore as I keep imagining the worst happening" Janna replied "I keep trying to stay positive but sometimes I loose myself to my darkest fears" she added with a strained smile
"We all fear we may fail to retrieve my son and Lilith Janna but we can't allow those fears to override our actions or we will indeed fail in our task" Sarah finally spoke up "I refuse to face the fact that I may never see my son again and that is something that drives me to succeed" she continued
Janna smiled as she listened to her friends talk and used their encouragement to force away the dark fears that kept hounding her since all of this had started when Alexander and Lilith had been ambushed.
"There's the Hellsing team up ahead" Adrian informed them as he spotted the seven member team which had been stationed in Sunnydale since Alexander and his group had departed the hellmouth
"Excellent we are almost at the end of this chase" Alucard growled in response as he fought the impulse to simply charge into the cult's base and rip every member to pieces for even daring to harm his daughter and their friend
"Calm yourself Alucard or you may end up killing those we need alive for the moment" Sir Integra cautioned him as she noted how angry he was
"Yes master" the undead king replied knowing she was right he did not want to end up exiling his own daughter or Alexander because he couldn't control himself
"What is the plan master?" Seras asked from beside him as they came to a stop beside the Hellsing team
"We have to be careful how we do this, so I purpose myself, Adrian and Seras go in through the roof and locate the three we need alive first" Alucard responded "Once we have found them I will send a telepathic message to Sir Integra and from there you will launch an attack on all sides of the building distracting them, once that happens Adrian, Seras and myself will capture the three leaders and move them to a secure location until we remove the rest of the cult" he finished
"Not a bad plan, I take it the reason you have purposed the three member capture team is cause of your vampiric gifts?" Vincent asked
"Correct, our gifts will give us all the advantage we need to get in unnoticed and to secure our targets as fast as possible" Alucard answered
"Agreed, I know exactly what kind of speed you guys can do" Vincent nodded in agreement "I would however suggest that my team and the Hellsing members go in first before the kid's group that way they can bring their magic to bear all the faster as we keep them pinned down with our own weapons?" Vincent added
Janna was about to object to the Vatican council's operative's idea until he clarified why he had suggested it, she noted both Sarah and Amy had also looked a little insulted at first as well
"We agree" Janna said after a few seconds "Our training in weapons combat wasn't completed before Alexander and Lilith were ambushed" she explained
"What about me and Kendra?" Sam Sabuto asked
"Your with the kid's group this time Mr Sabuto" Vincent answered "Neither of your are cut out for a fire fight" he added
"Is everyone agreed on the plan?" Sir Integra inquired as she pulled out her own hand cannon and checked its magazine and sights
Their were nods all around and they prepared to execute the plan as quickly as possible
(Dark Dimension)
Xander looked around the room as everyone agreed on the plan they had put together, Tara had insisted in dealing with Willow as he had insisted he be allowed to deal with his alternate self. Lilith and Aura had argued over who should deal with the rogue slayer Faith until Giles and Wesley had intervened and tried to point out that only another slayer could deal with Faith and Lilith had countered by stating a list of her own gifts without revealing she was a vampire which had actually worked as Lilith had claimed it was all due to a magical ritual she had undergone to help in the fight. She had also stated this would leave Aura free to help deal with whatever forces his alternate self and Faith would bring
Giles and Wesley had seen how this would aid them in dealing with a force which was sure to out number them and so had agreed that Lilith would deal with Faith which had at first angered Aura until she realised this was more due to strategy than belief in her ability to actually kill the rogue slayer.
"So are we all in agreement?" Giles asked
Everyone agreed although Gunn and one or two others still seemed annoyed that they were trusting the three outsiders to deal with the real threat in this fight
"Good, Angel will you make sure all the weapons we have are ready?" Giles asked the souled vampire who nodded "The rest of you better get some sleep, we're going to need it" he added and watched as the group which numbered fifty five left
"Giles we meant what we said about that sword, hide it somewhere no one will think to look for it" Xander said as he prepared to leave the room
"I will" Giles assured them "What do you want me to do with it if by some miracle we win?" he asked
"I would ask that you take it the Hellsing organisation and let them look after it" Lilith was the one who answered
"Why them?" Angel asked the only member not to have left yet
"I do not know the history the organisation in this dimension but in ours Vlad Tepes works for the Hellsing Organisation in destroying the various threats to our world, if it is the same in this dimension then they are the best people to make sure the sword never falls into the wrong hands" Lilith explained
"I promise if we are successful I will make sure it gets to them if they check out" Giles said after thinking it through for a few minutes
"Good enough" Lilith nodded in agreement before bidding them goodnight and following Alexander and Tara back to their room
"Do you think we have a chance Giles?" Angel asked as he made to leave as well
"If we can indeed kill Faith, Willow and our Harris then yes I think we can" Giles replied "I Believe once they are the dead either the barrier will fall on it's own or we can bring it down without any problems and once it is down then the Vatican and the watchers can come in and help us" he continued
"Then let us hope we don't fail in bringing them down" Angel said before leaving
Giles removed his glasses and wiped them and sighed as he realised they were about the gamble everything on this one course of action and he did something he had not done since Buffy had died and prayed they would succeed.
(Other Realm)
Tanith stood next to Jonas waiting for their lord to finally reply to what they had finally reported; they had made sure to remind their lord of the oafs they had taken when they became members of the powers
"So Tanith the powers are responsible for all of this trouble?" their lord growled in anger
"Yes my lord, we failed to heed your advice and allowed Malek to convince us his plan was the best way to remove a threat to our hope of winning this war" Tanith answered trying not to tremble at the look in their lord's eyes and the power he could see simmering there
"Insolent fools" their lord spat "He is no threat to our plans" he continued
"I know that now my lord, during this journey I have watched Alexander and Lilith grow and mature into valued warriors for our cause" Tanith stated "I finally see what you and Cassandra had been trying to tell me all along" he added looking down feeling ashamed of his actions
"Our oafs prevented us from telling you my lord what Malek planned but now he has forced us to break even them, all of our teachings and beliefs have been thrown aside by Malek and the small number who still support him" Jonas said trying to keep his voice even
"What does he plan now?" their lord commanded
"He plans to strike them directly when the portal opens again" Tanith answered
"He would dare go against one of the most important rules of our realm?" their lord spat as Cassandra watched quietly
"He has lost all sight on our true objectives my lord and we fear what he may try after this if he managed to succeed in killing Alexander, Lilith and Tara" Jonas answered
"My lord may I speak?" Cassandra finally spoke up
"Very well Cassandra speak but do it quickly I must deal with these traitors before Malek can truly harm Alexander and his comrades" their lord said his voice low and cold
"Malek and those who still support him must be stopped and dealt with but I believe Tanith and those who have come forward can be saved" Cassandra stated still a little surprised she was trying to help Tanith someone she had always hated and thought to be too arrogant for his own good
"How can you say that when they helped Malek start this whole thing?" their lord asked quite shocked by what Cassandra had said
"Because this journey has helped Alexander just like you yourself had stated, fate herself seemed to think this was a good thing to happen and it has also brought Tara into Alexander's life" Cassandra replied "But it has also opened Tanith and the others eyes that not everything out side their control is dangerous, it has taught them a valued lesson and did you not say yourself how even we are subject to fate. What if she wished this to happen to teach Tanith and his group this very lesson so they will not make it again in the future" she continued "The fact they have come forward in spite of their oafs shows their true colours my lord, I think it would be wise that they be spared Malek and his group's fate" she finished
Their lord seemed to be thinking very deeply over what Cassandra had said to him before he finally faced Tanith and his group
"I will spare you, but once Malek and his traitors have been dealt with the powers that be will under go a huge reconstruction and yours powers will be curtailed until your have proved you can use them wisely" he told them with a cold tone
Tanith, Jonas and the rest of the powers knelt down and bowed in submission to their lord's command. They found it hard to believe they would be spared and that it was thanks to Cassandra was even more shocking
"We will not fail you again my lord I swear" Tanith said
"We shall see Tanith, not you will stay here and wait" their lord commanded "I shall summon the guardians and deal with Malek and his traitors" he added before storming out of the room his magical aura visible for all to see
"Why did you help us Cassandra?" Tanith asked "You have never made it a secret you dislike the powers that be" he added
"I have always hated your arrogance Tanith and that of your fellow powers but it would seem you have finally seen how stupid you were been and what arrogance can lead you too" Cassandra answered "Malek and his supporters will pay for their arrogance and had you not seen the error of your way you too would be paying that price, I do not believe you will make this mistake again" she added
Tanith, Jonas and the rest of their group shook their heads, they were still shocked at how far their leader had fallen and none of them wanted to follow him down that path.