Chapter 51: Lead the Way

Xander adjusted his headset, making sure that they didn't pinch. The night vision goggles were state of the art, so it didn't give him mono-vision due to his particular affliction. Not like his old pair did; back when he didn't have a government toy store to borrow from. The slayers didn't bother with any vision enhancing equipment. The low light was enough for them to see nearly as clear as day. Goggles would have just slowed them down. Though they still brought some with them, just in case they went anywhere with even less light.

The slayers had left behind some of the available armor as well. There wasn't a high probability of them getting shot, so they didn't need ballistic plates. Only something to protect them from getting clawed and the like. They would also be able to utilize their natural agility better without the extra bulk. It wasn't the ideal solution, but things shouldn't be too bad in there. And they needed that particular ability to react quickly over relying on straight up armor.

"Okay." Xander brought his G36C up to a ready position, and tested the laser sight. It worked, and he turned it off. He looked over at the women. They were prepping up too.

Colleen and Vi were carrying Sig Sauer 552's. Better than full battle rifles for the close in work that they could expect. They carried melee weapons as well, stowed in carriers attached to the armor on their backs.

He checked to make sure that nothing was out of place. "Let's start our sweeps and make sure the area is clear. After that, I'll call in on what we should do."

Abby loaded her now signature customized M4 and made sure the strap was at the right length for easy access. But, not long enough to get snagged on anything. She glanced over at her partner. Faith was still only carrying the sword, but at least she was carrying a sidearm in a holster as well. It was a small step at least. She nodded at her. Faith nodded back. At least the more rebellious Council slayer was more calm than she had been said to be in the past. If she had to get into a firefight with a slayer by her side, she'd prefer one that wouldn't acted rashly and give in to battle rage. Flipping out here and moving in a less than controlled manner would just put everyone else in danger.

Xander looked over the other slayers as well. Monet slipped a magazine into her MP5, and readied it. She returned the look and tilted her head. Xander kept moving his view and turned to Faith. The only real unknown asset he had going in. He couldn't be sure exactly how she'd react if things got hairy and the bullets started flying. That was why he had put her with Abby. She'd been damn near marine trained since birth. The one to be able to handle the post-reckless slayer if she proved less than able. Or if she fell back on to her old habits.

Faith looked okay. He could see in her eyes, some amount of anticipation. Of course, they all had it in them. No hint of the deadly passion that she had shown in the past. That could be blinding. And lead to a bunch of dead young women. She had fire, he could tell that. But, it wasn't an overwhelming one. It was a drive, but not an careless one.

Xander safetied his weapon and let it hang. He walked over to the still official lead Council slayer. He reached around and adjusted the straps of the armor. Making sure it was tight. "You good?"

Faith looked back at him. She was slightly unnerved by the proximity, as well as the cold tone in which he spoke. It wasn't mean, just like there wasn't anything inside. He had a blank expression on his face too. Like he didn't feel anything. For some reason it was worse than if he acted like he hated her. She struggled slightly to look him in the eye. "How are you so good at this stuff? Guns and the soldier-boy routine?"

Xander returned her look. He stepped around her to check the fasteners on her back. "There was some magic thing about five years ago. Didn't know it at the time, but I dressed as a Ranger for Halloween one year, and some chaos mage turned me into one for the night. Guess some stuff stuck, after all this time. Good for us, no?"

"Uh, why do you know guns then? I don't recall this type of thing being used by the guys that take care of forests and shit." Faith turned around to look at him straight on. She only barely noticed the others looking at them.

"That's Army Ranger." Xander looked her over again; making sure everything was in its place. He didn't say it sarcastically in any way though. They'd moved past that.

For a second he was tempted to add in the typical army interjection with that. The one that meant anything and everything except no. But, he couldn't. He hadn't earned the right. He may have some Ranger training stuck in his head; much less rusty now, but that didn't mean he was one. He hadn't earned a tab.

"I don't remember you being like this back in Sunnydale." Faith was only slightly embarrassed by the misunderstanding. And was glad that Xander hadn't used the opportunity to get a dig in.

He picked up his weapon, feeling the comfortable weight. "That is definitely true. Guess I just didn't work hard enough at it. Wish to God I had though."

He walked back to the front again. Xander could tell that the rest were ready. "Okay. Let's go. Teams of two. Keep it slow, tight, and quiet."

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The detective put the file that she was staring at down. Her palms went to her eyes and rubbed. It was nearly three in the morning and she was still at her desk looking over the latest results from the police lab. They didn't say anything more than the previous ones did. Contaminated samples. Inconclusive. Worthless.

She didn't know whether they were intentionally trying to cover something up, or if they just couldn't wrap their heads around the idea that it might be something out of their limited frame of reference. She didn't know if she should be angry at them or just depressed.

A cup of coffee was placed in front of her, startling her from her reverie. She looked up at her partner.

"Still here Kate?" Detective Ruffalo smirked and leaned against her desk. The smile lit up his handsome face, and made him look years younger. Nearly a boy. "Double shift and you look like hammered shit."

"Always a pleasure Gordy." Detective Lockley picked up her coffee and took a sip. It was terrible. But, given the time, the best she could expect. "And I notice you're still here."

"Well. If you want to get noticed, you got to put in the hours. And don't call me that." Gordon replied. He looked at the file that his partner had been reviewing. "Red Hook? You still on that thing? We work homicide remember? That is a little out of our way you know."

"I just don't want it getting that far. I have a feeling about this one." Kate sighed and rubbed her neck. She knew that some of her reputation had followed her from the West Coast. Even after five years or so it still haunted her. Sometimes it just found her. Sometimes it came looking.

"A feeling. There's always a feeling. Like that guy found a couple months back shot in the head? You got the feeling there was something there too." Gordon shook his head. Kate was a good detective. And a good partner. Despite the past troubles in LA that were in her record. But, she had a way of getting involved in things she shouldn't. Good thing he was there looking out for her. "And that was likely just something personal that got hot. None of your freaky shit there. And I really don't think a couple of cases of vandalism and some reports by some longshoremen with overactive imaginations amounts to something worth our extremely valuable time."

Kate stood up and grabbed her jacket, slipping it on. Her coffee was left on her desk, mostly untouched. "I'm going out there to take a look around. You going to come with me?"

Gordon watched as she left. He sighed and picked up her abandoned cup of coffee. He placed it in the trashcan next to her desk. The detective shook his head; he really shouldn't be doing this anymore. Not if he ever wanted to get promoted. Still, that was his partner walking down the hall. He jogged after her, trying to catch up.

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Xander swept the small aisle before him. The packing containers stacked high had created all sorts of corners and blind alleys for all sorts of creatures to be hiding in. They hadn't found anything so far. But, they had heard a couple of things. Rustling. Wet rustling, like thick flesh rubbing against itself. And naked feet slapping water against the pavement. There was something there that night. And it didn't sound human.

He reached one of the areas that had been circled on the map. A small backup power generator for the lights. Or at least, that was what it used to do.

Xander signaled to his partner for the night to keep a look out. He knelt down, pushing his weapon out of the way in order to examine the site. He couldn't tell much through the goggles and the dim light, but he could tell that it had been ripped apart. By strong hands. Clawed ones too. There was anger there. But, nobody had been hurt. It just didn't make any sense.

The night hadn't proved all that fruitful so far. Some examination of the "attack" sites, but that hadn't given them much more than what the police reports had. Still, there was something to be said for seeing a crime scene for oneself.

The hunter stood up and grasped his weapon again. He heard a sound off to his left. Near the row of warehouses that kept the shipments for medium and long term holding. The ones people usually didn't go into. It sounded like it came from one of them. Xander looked towards the origin of the noise, but couldn't see anything.

Xander put up a hand, signaling Monet to cover him while he walked towards the area. He kept quiet. It was still in his patrol quadrant, so he didn't contact the others. They had their own areas to cover. And as long as he stayed in his own sector, he didn't have to worry about getting caught in a crossfire.

He made his way towards the warehouses, careful not to be drawn into an ambush. Xander checked every intersection and blind spot on the way there. The warehouse closest to where he had heard the sound was open. A sign over the entrance labeled it as the 16th warehouse there. Its large doors rested against the walls, and provided a clear view of much of the storage area. It wasn't all the way full, but there were enough containers in there to make it a difficult room to try to clear.

Xander moved towards it from the left, and motioned for Monet to take the other side. When he had reached the outer wall, he crept down it, until he was nearly at the open door. Monet had reached the other side, and he signaled for her to scan the open interior.

She nodded, slinging her weapon and pulling out a small dental mirror. The slayer angled the mirror across the open space, looking for movement. There wasn't anything there. She packed it up and took up her weapon again. Monet looked at her partner/leader and shook her head.

Xander clenched his jaw and nodded. Hardly what he wanted to do that night. He motioned the slayer to come to him.

Monet moved back the way she had come and ducked behind some rusting containers, making her way towards him stealthily. The idea being not to let anyone inside know they were coming.

Xander waited until she was at his rear. He breathed in and readied his weapon. He felt Monet put a hand on his shoulder. The hunter slipped inside quietly checking the immediate area. It was washed in green, the ambient light from outside allowing him just enough light to see. The way was clear, and he made his way towards the left, taking up cover. He felt rather than heard or saw his partner follow him in, covering the position front and to the right. All areas in view to prevent anyone or anything from getting the drop on them.

He crouched down and leaned against one of the cargo containers. Xander could feel the sweat beading on his brow. The cool metal of the container helped some. The moonlight had started to get obscured at times from passing clouds. It didn't do that much to his vision thankfully. He moved along the container towards the end nearest the left wall of the warehouse. He peeked around the corner quickly, exposing more of his head than he would have liked. There was nothing to be seen.

Xander glanced back and nodded. He moved forward again, Monet taking up the rear guard. They worked in silence. No need to speak to each other. Such was the nature of their relationship. Such was the nature of his relationship with all his slayers.

He thought about Vi, somewhere close, doing the same thing. He suppressed the thought though. Couldn't allow himself to lose focus. Couldn't worry about her and stay on top of the immediate.

Xander heard another sound. Louder this time. Sounded like more than one as well. In front of him and to the right. Given the layout, he would definitely need more people to successfully clear the building with minimal risk.

He stopped and leaned against the end of one of the cargo containers. Monet did the same. He checked the narrow path leading towards the center aisle of the warehouse. It was empty, but unfortunately that also meant that there wasn't any cover to the other side. Pity.

Xander looked down to the end of the warehouse. That path was free as well. This was as good a place as any to make a turn.

Xander thumbed the mike to his communications gear. He spoke softly so as to not attract attention. With the microphone strapped to his throat, it wasn't really a concern. "Team leads, this is Snake Eye. Have detected movement. Sounds like multiple targets. Any on your end?"

He heard Abby and Vi respond. Negatives from both slayers. It looked like events were confined to their current location.

"Alright. Advance to my position, full stealth approach. Warehouse 16. Door's open." Xander whispered. He took another look around to see if anyone had overheard him.

"Target is in the northeast corner. I'm on the left between two containers, about halfway down the warehouse."

He glanced towards Monet. She shook her head, telling him that there still wasn't any movement that she could detect. "Move in from the right, and take cover at the east end of the building. Let me know when you're in place."

"Affirmative." Abby stated over the radio. She started towards the meet point, careful to make sure she made sure her way was clear. Faith followed.

"Affirmative. Vi confirmed over the radio. Xander's girlfriend took up her weapon in both hands again and started towards him. Colleen followed, covering her back.

Xander nodded to himself and looked up making sure he wouldn't get ambushed from above. He settled in, his gun pointing forward. The agent on assignment kept an ear out though. To make sure nobody tried to sneak up on them in the interim.

They were getting closer. It was something at any rate. Now all he had to do was wait for his reinforcements to come in.

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"Is there something I can help you with?" Mickey Dugin asked the second visitor he had had that night. It was positively busy now.

"Yes. I need to go in and examine the crime scene." Detective Lockley held out her badge. Dugin only paid cursory attention to it. With all that had happened, he'd seen enough NYPD badges to know that she was the real deal.

Mickey just looked at her. Normally he'd be watching the late late show on his small TV inside his nice climate controlled security station. It wasn't normal times though. "What's this about? I already let the Homeland Security guy in. What do you guys need now?"

Kate narrowed her eyes. It wasn't her case, but she should have heard about a DHS agent if he had been sent to investigate any crime in New York City. Especially if it had happened in her district. She looked over to her partner. Gordon looked just as confused as she was.

The police detective looked back at the guard. "Who?"

The security guard sighed. He was getting real tired with the government types. They never let guys like him now anything, even when it came down to giving him the heads up on when they might be coming in. Now, it seemed like they didn't even bother to keep each other informed. "You know? The one-eyed guy. Had a patch over his left eye. Something Harris."

"Okay." Detective Lockley replied. She wasn't sure what was going on, but some mysterious Homeland agent, or someone passing himself off as one, operating in New York City on this case peaked her weird-o-meter. "I'll be sure to talk to him. Now, if you could open the gate."

"Okay." Dugin said. He didn't really care that much anymore. Let the cops bring in as many as they wanted to. It was no skin off his nose. On the other hand, it did explain why they had to pay such high taxes.

He walked back to guardhouse and triggered the controls for the gates. They opened and he watched as the pretty blonde cop drove in.

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"Snake Eye this is Dragonfly. We've linked up with Breezer and are in position." Xander heard a voice over his radio. It was Vi. Certainly didn't take them long to get there.

"Affirmative Dragonfly." Xander gave his response. "Check the path along the wall and see if it's clear."

Vi moved forward carefully along the cargo container, and peeked around the corner. There wasn't much light. She pulled a pair of night vision goggles and placed them on her face. She nodded towards the others, who did the same thing. Only Faith didn't, not having had the training to utilize them in battle. That came later.

The slayer looked around the corner again. She caught movement. A large creature paced in the far corner. The barest of light from the outside reflected off of the humanoid's slick, but bumpy dark skin. She could just make out three ridges rising up from the creature's head.

"Snake Eye, this is Dragonfly I have a visual." Vi whispered into her mike. "It's about six and a half feet tall and looks like the creature from the black lagoon. Except there are three vertical fins on its head."

Xander remembered his last experience with such things. The description fit. However, when his former teammates had changed, they'd become fairly vicious killers. It didn't make sense that these ones didn't seem to attack people, even when given a prime opportunity. And there hadn't been a spike in missing persons cases in the areas. Nothing even amongst the homeless that sometimes congregated near the terminal. They might have changed their food source, but the random attacks on machinery and equipment didn't fit their usual methodology either. Things just didn't add up.

"Okay." Xander replied quietly. "I'm going to advance forward from my position perpendicular to you. We will then move down the central aisle to the end of the warehouse. See if you can get someone the high ground. Be prepared to fire if needed. You are now in weapons hold. I repeat, weapons hold. Come back."

"Confirmed weapons hold Snake Eye." Vi told him. She glanced back at the others. They nodded an acknowledgement to her.

"Colleen. Find a good vantage point to cover Xander." Vi ordered.

Colleen nodded and looked around. She noticed a ladder leading up to a second floor and started to scale it. She stayed in the dark as much as possible and glanced behind her before she had to move into the light. The small slayer made sure she wasn't seen when she climbed the rest of the way up.

Once she reached the top, she lay down in a spot of dark and moved her Sig 552 into position. She kept the laser sight off and the scope capped. Didn't want to give the enemy any premature indication of her presence. "Snake Eye, this is High Hat. I am on the second floor, at the right rear wall. Waiting for your command."

Xander moved around the corner and stopped at the end of the path. He checked both sides and forward, making sure there was nothing close by. He readied himself, and made a silent run towards the other side. Monet followed as well.

He leaned against the container, and listened for any signs that he or the girls had been detected. There wasn't anything. He moved down the line towards the far end of the warehouse, making sure to check each path he crossed. He reached the last and stopped. "Dragonfly. I am at the end and am preparing to engage. Keep your eyes open."

"Confirmed." Vi replied. She lay down into a prone position, ready to fire. Abby took a position next to her, prepared to support. Faith took up the rear and watched their backs, her gun in her right hand, and her sword in a sheath lying flat against her back.

Xander stepped around the corner, gun sweeping the narrow corridor. He saw something large move in the dark. It was familiar, somewhat frighteningly familiar. Luckily it had its back towards him. Another one was crouched down near it, looking at something in the corner. He couldn't make out what the subject of its attention was.

If there had been any previous casualties, Xander would have opened fired. As it was, he wanted to know why things had gone down as they had. Why they had not attacked when stumbled upon. It could be important after all. He spoke loudly. "I don't suppose you're allowed to crash here."

The larger standing creature spun around and looked for the speaker. It growled when it saw the two humans standing there. Pointing weapons at him. It didn't try to attack them though. It just stayed in place, pacing side to side a bit.

"You haven't killed anyone so far. That's why I haven't opened fire yet." Xander didn't know if they understood him or not. But, they didn't seem to be reacting. So it was something at the very least.

"Who are you?" The standing mutated fish man nearly spat out. Its voice was gravelly and awkward, like its mouth couldn't work like it used to. The other one stood up and looked at the two invaders.

"You can talk now." Xander said, somewhat unnecessarily. "Okay. I don't know if you remember, but I'm Xander. From the swim team. I'm not here to hurt you if I don't need to. We need to take you in. People aren't going to stand for you making trouble here, so you're going to have to come with me. Nobody's dead here, so we can make this work. I promise that you won't come to harm. As long as you don't try anything. Please."

The one that hadn't spoken growled. It started to pace as well, but more quickly than the first. It was a bit smaller, but seemed to be thicker in build.

"Okay. Just relax. Just come with us." Xander wondered which one it was. He looked towards the taller one. "Who were, are, who are you?"

"I…I don't remember." The creature grunted out.

"Dodd? Cameron? Gage?" Xander suggested. The creature didn't seem to react.

"Gage." The former schoolmate repeated. It stopped. "Gage."

"Okay." Xander said. He looked toward the other one. "And you might be?"

The creature didn't react.

"Look. I'm going to lower my weapon." Xander shifted his aim down, ready to bring it up if need be. He may have to make the first overture, but he wasn't going to take any chances. "And then you can come with me. I have some people. They can see about getting you fixed up. Changed back. How does that sound?"

The one that hadn't spoke started to run forward. Xander raised his weapon to get a clear shot, but it didn't matter. The other creature, Gage, grabbed it in a lightning fast move and threw the more volatile monster into the side of the warehouse. He growled and took hold of his former teammate. The mutated one.

Xander held his fire, trying to figure things out. Evidently the gill men weren't of one mind when it came to what they used to be. He thumbed his mike. "Hold fire."

The girls confirmed, but Xander didn't bother to acknowledge. He watched as the smaller one kicked Gage off of him. They stared at each other, growling, the humans forgotten.

The smaller one moved first, running towards Gage. It managed to get a strike in, before Gage could find an opening. They wrestled until the larger creature was able to utilize his reach and take hold of the other fish man's head. The former Sunnydale swim team member growled and twisted with all his might. The snap was audible, even to the slayers at the other end of the building.

"Okay." Xander didn't bother looking at the corpse that Gage had just let fall. "I take it you want to go with me?"

The remaining creature nodded.

"Where are the other guys from the team?" Xander asked, wondering if this was the end of their line.

The fish man looked at his fallen comrade. "Dead. Last."

"You're the last. The only one left." Xander figured things out. Being the last could certainly change things. Like other sports team, they had been a family. With the rest gone, whatever the reason, Gage might have saw that things needed to change. Not everyone always wanted that though.

Gage stepped back, nearer to the corner and pointed down. It motioned for Xander to come over and look.

Xander lowered his weapon a fraction. He moved his head towards Monet. "Keep watch. This could still be a trap."

"Got it." Monet said, she moved towards the right, keeping her field of fire open. Her weapon was already raised and sighted to take out the fish man if he made an openly hostile move.

Xander took a step forward. Then another, carefully moving to whatever it was that Gage wanted him to see. It took a moment to figure out. It didn't really make any sense, and the night vision didn't exactly make things easier.

He saw shredded cardboard and rags laid down in the corner. It had been matted down in the center, and inside rested a large semi-spherical shape. It was somewhat glistening in the small bits of light that reached that corner, but Xander was able to tell what it was.

An egg.

Xander drew a breath in. He didn't want to think about how that was possible. They may have been hermaphrodites. Or had sexual relations with a shark or something. That wasn't exactly something he wanted to think about.

He looked up at Gage. "Are there any more?"

The fish man shook his head.

Xander couldn't see any real reaction in its face, nor would have been able to read it if the mutated human had been capable of showing them. But, he believed him. Or maybe it was just hope that they wouldn't see an explosion of such things. Gage may not want to kill, but that didn't mean any others would feel the same way. He'd hate it if these things spawned. "Then you and he are the last. We can see about helping you. If you come with us. That's what you want? We can protect you and your, egg, if you want."

Gage looked back at his former teammate. And nodded.

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"This is stupid." Ruffalo swept his flashlight around. He couldn't see anything out of the ordinary however. Just rows of shipping containers, warehouses, and the odd bulk of machinery. "What do you think we're even going to find out here?"

"Nothing, if you don't keep your mouth shut." Kate said, annoyed at her partner. Still, she felt somewhat heartened that he had bothered to come with her. He may complain sometimes, but he was there for her. As a partner should be. And that meant something.

She saw one of the areas that had been designated as one of the attack sites. There wasn't much there anymore, but busted machinery. It seemed to be a generator of sorts. Likely backup to power the lights. She shone her flashlight onto it.

It was thoroughly trashed, but there was still something it could tell her. Officially, the police reports said that the damage had been made by a tool. Like a pry bar or some other such thing. To her, close up and live, the marks on it looked like it had been done with claws. Ripped apart through sheer brute force.

Kate gripped her flashlight harder in her left hand, and unsnapped the latch on the sidearm belted to her side. She pulled it out and flicked off the safety.

"Kate." Gordon warned as he saw what his partner had done. Softly though. It certainly wasn't proper police procedure. Of course, technically they shouldn't have been there at all. "What the hell are you doing?"

A crash echoed towards them. Kate looked up, swinging her light towards the row of warehouses in the distance that seemed to be where the sound emanated from. She couldn't tell exactly which one it was though. "Get your gun out. I think something's here with us."

Gordon sighed, but did as his partner advised him. He swung his light over towards the warehouses to. He didn't see anything though. "It was probably just a cat or something."

"Right. Just a cat." Kate repeated. She started towards the warehouses. Looked like her hunch had paid off.

"If there's anybody there just make sure you holster your gun. We don't want to get sued here." Gordon said towards her retreating back. "Man."

He rushed to follow her.

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"So what are we going to be doing with fishstick back there?" Faith asked as she followed Xander out of the warehouse.

He had had Vi and Colleen drag the other body out of the warehouse and weigh it down with some bricks. With the fish in the sea, there was a good chance that nobody would ever find the corpse. In any recognizable form in any case.

Xander had considered taking it back with him, for examination, but Gage had nixed that idea with a loud grunt. He couldn't blame him. He wouldn't want his own dead to be dissected for research.

He looked at the slayer. "Don't call him that."

"What's the matter?" Faith smiled wryly. Abby walked up with her and frowned. The other slayer was antagonizing Xander. Mild ribbing. It was the wild slayer's way, but she wasn't sure if it would help matters.

"That could very easily have been me." Xander stated. He looked towards Abby's suppressed look of shock.

"His name is Gage." Xander explained. "We were on the swim team together. Well, he was on the team, and I just joined, undercover like. It looked like something had killed some of them and we were trying to figure out what it was. Turned out that the something was what they were turning into. I got exposed to the same drugs that they were. But, my case was caught in time. The rest, well they weren't so lucky."

Abby wondered if that was part of the reason why he had went the extra step in trying to take them alive. If he felt some sort of kinship with them. "What happened?"

"Escaped. They got out to sea. And I got healed." Xander continued. West Coast to East. A hell of a long way to swim. All around one continent or another. "That's about it. Gage wasn't the nicest fella. But, he didn't deserve this. And I figure, if possible, we should try to help him. If he can change, maybe he deserves to be saved."

"And the egg?" Faith asked.

Xander shrugged. They had reached the vehicles and had started to put their equipment away. "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it."

He opened the back doors to the van. He placed his rifle inside and took out a small black bag. He pulled out a pair of manacles.

Turning around to face his team, he gave his orders. "Okay. Abby, go with Vi, Monet, and Colleen. There should be some guys at the drop point, but call ahead first and make sure they know that he isn't hostile. Faith will come with me. I'll drop her off at the airport and then come find you guys."

He looked at the fish man that had come with them, cradling his egg as if it was the most important thing in the world. To him, it may very well be. "Gage. I'm going to have to put these on you. And they're going to be covering you on the way back. It's a precaution. I trust you won't do anything to make me regret sparing your life?"

Gage looked at him. And nodded. He held out his arms, still clutching the egg. The fish man let himself be chained, noting that the small human made sure not to jostle the egg. A small point in the human's favor.

"Okay. It'll be okay. They're going to take you to some people that will try to help you." Xander said. He wasn't really worried. Even if Gage wasn't trustworthy, he knew that his girls would be more than a match for him. Xander looked towards Monet. "You can take the SUV. We'll take the van back. Make the drop."

The girls packed their things and got in the car. Xander watched them as they finished and Monet got in the driver's seat. He walked around to the other side and closed the door as Abby got in next to the driver. "Abby, get Lampkin to get in touch with the Russians."

"Why?" Abby thought about the extra information she had learned about her leader. It seemed like he still had a heart, at least more than just for Vi and his own. That he wasn't just cold hard logic and calculations. He was still the scariest son of a bitch she had ever met, but underneath that executioner surface, he was still a sensitive and caring person inside. That hadn't been completely destroyed.

"It was an old Soviet program." Xander looked in the back, making sure that they were all settled in. "They may have some research that could help reverse the process. At least somewhere we can start."

Abby nodded. "Okay."

"Good. Now go." Xander stepping back from the car. He started around back, towards his own vehicle.

"Xander." Abby called after him. She saw him stop and turn towards her. "You did the right thing."

Xander smiled and started walking again. He reached the van as the other car drove off. He took off the rest of his equipment and put it in the back of the van. He waited for Faith to do the same and closed the doors when they were done.

"What was that about?" Faith asked. She wondered why Xander had structured his team as he had. The fish guy was big and strong, but three slayers was overkill.

"Nothing." Xander said. "Besides. We need to talk."

"What ab-" Faith started to ask, stopping when she saw to people with flashlights come towards them. They were a fair bit away, but she got the feeling that they weren't just civilians.

Xander looked behind him, towards what Faith was looking at. He saw a tall blonde woman and dark haired man come towards them. He wondered if he needed to go for the gun that he still had at the small of his back. Of course, if they were there innocently, than pulling a gun wouldn't help matters. And it certainly wouldn't be covert. "Don't do anything. Remember, we're supposed to be here. Let me do the talking. You can act intimidating or something."

Faith nodded.

"Is there something I can do for you?" Xander asked as the two came within speaking distance. He stepped out in front, drawing the attention to him. The government agent watched as the male looked at him, then at Faith, eyes lingering on her neckline. The female however, seemed to concentrate on him. The eye patch especially. She was sizing him up. That was clear. As if he was the bigger threat.

Xander entertained whether he should be flattered by that or not. He saw the bulges that were at the side of both of the newcomers' hips. Guns no doubt. There shouldn't be any official police presence there. And they didn't look like security guards. It didn't leave many possibilities. None of them favorable.

"Yeah. You can show me some identification." Kate said, looking the man up and down. No visible weapons but that didn't mean anything. She glanced over towards the woman that was there, standing near the van and in shadow. She noticed the young woman step out a bit more into view. Distracting her partner. Something about her...

A flash of recognition and her gun was in her hand. Kate raised it at one more of the creatures of the night. "You. Faith. Get down on the ground. Do it now."

Gordon didn't know what to do, but he had to back up his partner. He pulled his weapon as well, covering the man with the eye patch. "NYPD. Hands on your head."

Xander was shocked. That was unexpected. A cop that could identify Faith by sight. No way to have predicted that. He watched as the male pulled a gun as well and bark orders at him. He shook his head and raised his hands up, muttering.

"Aw crap."

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Author's Note: Elaine: It depends on what you consider the whole truth. Remember, Buffy is coming at things from her perspective. Part of that is bias. Part of that is that she's working off of incomplete information. That will skew what she can say just as much, or even more so.

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