Buffy made it to Gotham's main cemetery in record time as she parked Faith's car in a secluded area behind a warehouse where no one would think to look for a car. Locking the door, she pocketed the keys and walked the two short blocks until she was facing the imposing Southern gate that led into one of the largest graveyards she'd ever had the displeasure of knowing.
Sighing softly, as she shook her head—Buffy vaulted over the twenty foot gate with ease and landed on the other side, sending out her Slayer senses. Ever since Faith's little jaunt to death and back, there hadn't been a ton of baddie activity anywhere, but Gotham had been especially quiet. Instinctively, Buffy knew it was unlikely she'd find much of anything to slay here, but she had needed to get some distance from Wayne Manor and all the lovey-dovey ickiness that seemed to pervade over everything there. She was truly happy for her sister Slayer. Finding a man like Bruce Wayne who could not only protect himself, but allowed Faith to be herself and didn't hold her past against her, was a rare find in this world. As much as she'd loved Angel, Buffy had known that they would never work long term. Riley had loved her, far more than she'd loved him and that was never a good sign. Spike had filled a void, and she'd thrived on the danger and pure sexual chemistry they'd had but it wasn't love—despite what she'd said to him back in Sunnydale before the First had been destroyed.
At least not the kind of love that Faith had with Bruce.
The kind that stories were written about.
The kind that truly healed...
So here she was, doing what she did best. Patrolling. Slaying. Killing. Faith had once accused her of being lucky enough to have the love of family and friends, while she'd been left all alone...but the truth was that Slayers were always alone. No one could understand the precarious edge in which her life had always been balanced on. Faith understood it and hell, even Kennedy probably got it a bit—but no one could really know what it was like to have the fate of the world resting on your shoulders every damn day of your life since the age of fifteen.
Faith, even after defeating Danthalzar and returning, wasn't left with the burden of being the chosen one again...no...
That fun job fell once again to her.
And her alone...
As she continued to walk in silence, and reaching out her senses...Buffy knew the minute she was no longer alone in the graveyard. But what she was sensing wasn't vamps, nor demons...it was something else. Human—but dark.
Kinda the same vibe she got off of Bruce, and now Oliver Queen.
Her eyes widened in sudden understanding just a split second before she dove down, an arrow whizzing by her shoulder as she ducked behind a large stone grave marker.
She could now feel there were several people surrounding her perimeter. Probably fifteen in all. She crouched down and moved silently behind a large mausoleum before launching herself up the ten feet or so, and lying flat against the roof of the approximately seven by six granite roof. Peering down into the dark, Buffy could see several people moving silently across the grounds and they were all obviously searching for her.
Pulling her hood up over her head, lest her shock of blonde hair give her away—she waited until two of the intruders were on either side of her hidey-hole and then dropped down silently, disarming and knocking out the first one before the second one rounded the corner. When he finally did, Buffy got a good look at her quarry and her eyes widened at the visage of a large hulking man in dark black combat garb, with a katana at the ready.
So probably League...
Faith had warned her about the League of Shadows...
The man's sword arced through the air and met the blade of the sword Buffy had liberated from the first man, and within a minute, Buffy had knocked him out but unfortunately for her, the noise had outed her position and she could sense the others quickly heading her way.
She rushed through some tall brush and over to another larger mausoleum, again launching herself up and watching to see how many foes she would be facing.
The six men moving in her direction from all sides let Buffy know that she was in for a hell of a showdown.
Jumping over two of them to her right, she fought them simultaneously, disarming the first and sending them second across the graveyard with a roundhouse kick, wincing as the warrior landed with a thud against a good sized grave stone, grunting in pain at the sound of something breaking.
Buffy didn't know if it was his body or the grave marker.
Three more attacked and the first one managed to disarm her, but she ducked and rolled, kicking behind the knee of the second of her her assailants; breaking his leg...
As she reached for his sword, another arrow flew in her direction and she used her momentum to grab the third man and swung his body just in time...the arrow piercing his chest between his shoulder and arm...
He grunted as she pushed him down and knocked the first man out with a scissor kick to the back of his head.
As another person moved into the fray, Buffy vaulted herself ten feet over her remaining foes, running for the northern boundary of the graveyard—but didn't immediately notice someone moving out of the shadows until she was knocked down.
As she stated to fall, Buffy kicked her leg out and her foot landed just hard enough that whomever had tried to stop her, had buckled as they groaned out in pain. She stood easily and looked up, her posturing stiffening as she was now surrounded by six more intruders.
Who the fuck were these people?
They stopped once she was surrounded.
And then someone started clapping.
Buffy glanced over at where the sound was coming from, her eyes widening when another figure emerged from the shadows, his outfit was much more ornate then the lackeys that had attacked her and he had a bow slung over his shoulder.
"Most impressive Mrs. Wayne, although I thought you'd put up more of a fight."
Buffy's eyes narrowed but she scoffed before taking her right hand and pulling back her hood, watching the man before her, who's own face was covered by a hood of his own, take a step back.
"I'm not Mrs. Wayne." Buffy mocked, as she folded her arms over her chest.
Her quarry, tilted his head as he considered her and Buffy could feel the man's aura, which was just as strong as Bruce's. It was clear to her now, who this man was.
"Malcolm Merlyn, I presume?"
The man in question chuckled deeply as he pulled off his own hood and stared her down. His lips were quirked up slightly, almost as if he was humoring her.
"Do I know you?"
"It wouldn't seem so, but your reputation precedes you. I did have the honor of meeting your son and daughter earlier this evening. Nice kids. Wonder what they'd think of daddy out here accosting defenseless women in graveyards. Do you make it a habit?"
Dark eyes narrowed at her, but Buffy stood her ground.
"You're a friend of the Wayne's?"
"We're acquainted. You know how fancy and boring those stuffy dinner parties are. So I thought I'd take a nice little stroll and clear my head."
"In the local graveyard?"
"Well, at least I thought I'd get some peace and quiet here. Guess I was wrong."
"Interesting, I'd assumed you were Faith Wayne. Since she is a Slayer..."
"A Slayer?"
Buffy's voice was light and inflected with just the right amount of curiosity. It was obvious Malcolm Merlyn didn't know that there were two Slayers.
"Yes." Malcom moved closer to her, his eyes raking over her form. "Although I must admit, I hadn't thought there might be more than one. From what I know of Slayer lore, only one is chosen at a time."
"Huh? Super interesting, but I'm not sure what any of this has to do with me?" Buffy quipped back easily. "I was just out and about taking a leisurely stroll, when I was suddenly attacked without provocation. I think I have a right to defend myself."
"So you're telling me you're not a Slayer?"
Buffy sighed, feigning exasperation. "I think you're making this shit up and frankly, I'm getting bored now."
Merlyn moved so quickly that had she been anyone else, and her reflexes not honed to perfection, the sudden attack would've seen her dead; but Buffy dodged the blow as she simultaneously called the Scythe to her and when it clashed with Merlyn's sword—the power surge blasted the man back off his feet while simultaneously causing the other League members to collapse when their eyes were blinded from the pulsating light.
"That was dumb." Buffy snarked out caustically as she simultaneously knocked out the two nearest goons and started in on the next two as Merlyn laid prone on the ground, desperately trying to get his bearings.
At that moment, Oliver and Bruce who were making their way into the graveyard, heard the clang of the Scythe and felt the power discharge. Then it was a race to find Buffy before it was too late.
Faith had felt the call as well, and as she was at least a half a mile away, she accelerated her motorcycle and tore through the streets of Gotham, desperate to get to the graveyard.
Buffy however was holding her own fairly well and had knocked out four more goons when Bruce and Oliver came upon her.
They both halted simultaneously and just watched as Buffy launched a member of the League past them into the air about ten feet and right into the side of a mausoleum, causing a gargoyle to break free and land on the man's head, knocking him out cold.
Then there was a cry of pain, and Oliver's eyes widened as Buffy head butted another goon, before she elbowed the back of his neck as he crumpled to the ground, knocking him out cold.
Seeing a third trained member of the League sneak up behind her, Oliver pulled out his bow and released an arrow, hitting the man in the leg.
Buffy turned quickly and spotted him, and her mouth broke out into an amused grin but unfortunately, her concentration faulted for a split second and she was hit from the side—which caused her to tumble to the ground.
Oliver watched as she rolled and then arched her body forward, kicking her legs out and vaulting herself right back upon two feet, as she parried several blows in succession.
Wayne moved to the left, and started to fight several goons at once and Oliver was impressed with the man's hand to hand fighting skills. He decided to move towards Buffy and didn't immediately notice Merlyn until he turned his head and a hand whipped out in front of his face, catching an arrow mid flight right before it was about to strike him down.
His head turned to the blonde Slayer and she grinned.
"You're welcome."
He nodded quickly, and then entered the fun, as it seemed several more League members had joined in the battle.
Malcolm Merlyn however, had decided to go after Wayne and made to intercept the Dark Knight— who was fighting several of his soldiers simultaneously. He brought his bow up and let the arrow fly, only for it to be stopped mid air...right before it hit Wayne in the back.
Then he could feel the air shift and change...
As he slowly turned around, he came face to face with a very angry Faith Wayne.
"Wrong move, dipshit." She growled as her fist made contact with his nose, in a move that was faster than anything he'd ever seen. There was simply no way he could've blocked it.
He had felt Ra's power, which was considerable but this...
This was something else.
Faith Wayne grabbed him up by the collar of his leathers and lifted him and then he felt himself being twirled in the air and slammed back down on the ground.
Then his body was taking hit after hit, and he did his best to try and stop it but it was like he was paralyzed from moving.
Eventually the hits stopped when Wayne pulled his wife back...
And she growled at him...
"Let me go! That fucker would've killed you!"
"Beautiful! You can't kill the man."
"He's right Faith." Buffy piped in, moving over to her sister Slayer who's whole body was radiating fury. "He's not worth it."
Faith snarled, but decided to let it go. When she looked over to where the other members of the League were, they were all unconscious on the ground.
"Shit...did I do that?"
Buffy nodded.
"Yeah, you did. You ruined my fun, you know? Did you have to show off?"
"Bite me, B!" Faith bit back. "Don't you know it's not polite to play with your food before you eat it?"
"I wasn't playing for fun, Faith! Besides, I did manage to knock out about eight of these idiots before you guys even showed."
"Eight, huh?" Oliver asked and Buffy nodded, before she glanced down at Merlyn, who was bloodied and lying at their feet.
"Should we take daddy dearest back to his kiddo's? Maybe they can knock some sense into the man. He thought I was you, Faith."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"Scouting mission. Gotta give the guy props for doing recon in the graveyard. Probably figured I'd show here eventually."
"Most likely."
Bruce grabbed Merlyn and hauled him to his feet while Oliver grabbed the weapons from the League members.
"What are we going to do with these guys?" Oliver asked.
Buffy glanced at Faith and she grinned evilly, before calling out, "D'Hoffryn, you got a minute?"
A portal opened up from the ground and Oliver's eyes widened, while Merlyn coughed out in shock, as a lone figure emerged from the ether—he was blue, horned and obviously a demon.
"Slayer? Why am I here?"
Faith pointed to the bodies littering the graveyard and D'Hoffryn sighed heavily.
"And just what am I supposed to do with..." the demon silently counted the bounty, "twenty seven mortals?"
"Oh, I don't want you to turn them into lackeys or anything, but perhaps you could see fit to give them a one way ticket to Purgatory?"
"Really? I am just supposed to do this for you? What do I get in return?"
Faith sighed and opened her mind to the Lord of Vengeance.
"I still have the sword, which I will return to you if along with this favor, when the time comes? You will send Ra's there permanently."
The demon chuckled, his teeth flashing in amusement.
"It is such a shame you couldn't see fit to join me, Slayer. You truly would've been the most worthy vengeance demon in forty eons."
"Such a flatterer." Faith winked.
D'Hoffryn snapped his fingers and several portals opened, and Merlyn swallowed heavily as his entire contingent vanished.
Oliver looked over at Wayne, who was now smirking proudly at his wife, while Buffy was shaking her head in amusement.
"Please call me when it is done." D'Hoffryn replied, and Faith bowed her head.
"I will. Thank you."
"Of course. I must say I'm finding this all very entertaining. I haven't had this much fun in forty thousand years."
"Glad I can amuse you."
The Blue demon grinned and then another portal opened and he disappeared as quickly as he'd come.
When he was gone, Faith glared again at Merlyn, who was being held in her husband's firm grip. "I gave you an out before and you didn't take it. Trust me when I tell you that had you harmed my husband, I would've sent you to the pit...permanently. I'm sure you know the one I mean?"
Based on the way he'd paled, Faith was fairly certain Malcolm Merlyn knew exactly what she was talking about.
"We should get back to the Manor."
"With him?" Oliver asked.
"I think that depends on him," Faith replied, "and if he is capable of cooperation."
Four sets of eyes weighed heavily on him, and Malcolm realized in this moment he'd backed the wrong side.
"I can help you."
Faith lifted an eyebrow in disbelief, but Buffy just moved over and stared up into the older man's eyes with a measured look.
"I would think your children would appreciate it if you did."
The blonde Slayer then grabbed the injured man by the arm and trudged off with him without another word...leaving three people staring after her completely stunned.
"Did she just decide to?"
"Buffy does that." Faith offered with a half-shrug.
Oliver didn't reply watching the diminutive Slayer, as she pulled Merlyn along with her. Giving Wayne a brief nod, he decided to follow if for no other reason than he didn't think it was a good idea leaving Buffy alone with Merlyn. He wasn't sure the man could be trusted to keep his word.
He followed silently to where Buffy had parked her car, and listened to the conversation as she and Merlyn talked.
"So?" Malcolm cleared his throat awkwardly, "how is it there are two of you?"
"I died."
"Oh, and Faith was called?"
"Something like that."
Based on her tone of voice, Oliver was fairly certain there was a larger story there.
"Did the Lazarus Pit bring you back?"
"No." Buffy gritted out. "But if we're being all technical, I've really died three times. The first was fleeting, the second was not...and the third isn't even worth mentioning so I usually don't."
Malcolm just stared down at the young woman as he didn't know what to say to that. Her voice was almost flippant.
As if she was discussing the weather.
"So you were the Slayer before Faith Wayne was called?"
"Yes. The lovely Chosen One. I've faced so many apocalypses, baddies and hell gods it's hard to keep count."
"Excuse me? Hell Gods?"
"Yep. Good times."
Oliver shook his head as he noticed Merlyn gazing at him over his shoulder, the older man's expression was clearly disbelieving.
"It's true." Oliver said evenly. "Wayne shared that story with me earlier tonight. Said you sacrificed yourself when the Glory opened the portal from her dimension into ours."
Buffy nodded but didn't reply. She didn't know whether to be upset or relieved that Bruce had shared that little tidbit. Thankfully, they'd reached the car and she shoved Merlyn into the passenger seat, while Queen took the back seat as she rounded for the driver's side of the car.
Once they were on the road, Merlyn continued to pepper her with questions.
"So, Sunnydale?"
Buffy flinched slightly, but Oliver noticed.
"What of it?"
"It wasn't destroyed by a meteor, was it?"
"No."
"Hell Mouth?"
"Yes." Buffy side-eyed her captive as she ventured, "Should I be surprised that you know about Hell Mouth's? What other little tidbits has Ra's shared with you? Did you know he's been alive for over 600 years, using the pits to restore himself?"
Merlyn smirked. "I know enough."
"Obviously you don't, if you thought you could go up against a Slayer and win." She bit out, and Oliver grinned when Malcolm frowned. "Let me buy you a clue Merlyn. Do you know where the power of a Slayer comes from?"
Merlyn shook his head but his expression was curious, and Oliver was also intrigued as he'd wondered the same thing.
"The short version is Slayers have been around for eons. A group of men long ago decided to create the line of Slayer's by imbuing the heart and soul of a Shadow Demon into a young girl and thereby giving her its powers. Do you know the lore of a Shadow Demon?"
"No." Merlyn replied, glancing again over his shoulder at Queen, who was listening avidly.
"A shadow demon is the only kind of demon legend says, that can't be killed. It's due to the fact that it's incorporeal, and all powerful. These men I spoke of, they called themselves Shadow Men and somehow managed through ancient magic, to trap the demon but they could not kill it. So they forced it to merge with the first Slayer, Sineya. She lost her humanity, but due to her strength and viciousness, she managed to kill the Old Ones. The last of the true demons who walked upon the earth. Over the millennia, the line of Slayers were able to regain some of that humanity back."
"But not all of it." Merlyn inquired softly and Buffy shrugged, but her mouth quirked in a small smile.
"Enough of it to temper our baser impulses." She replied blithely. "The Old Ones were all powerful. The blood of the Old Ones was thought to be lost, but fortunately that turned out not to be the case."
"I don't understand."
"Faith." Buffy chuckled. "Her biological father was the last of the Old Ones. She is part Slayer, but more."
Merlyn swallowed as he considered this, but Queen spoke up and asked, "and you?"
Buffy was quiet for a long moment before she glanced back at Oliver in the rear view mirror. Her eyes were hard and forbidding.
"Are you familiar with the First?"
Oliver shook his head, but Merlyn's breath hitched.
"The first evil."
Buffy nodded.
"That was how Sunnydale was destroyed. Faith and I fought the First. We won."
"How?" Merlyn whispered, and Oliver didn't think he'd ever heard Malcolm sound so...in awe...before.
Buffy didn't reply for another few moments as she turned onto the road that would eventually lead them back to Wayne Manor. But once they were about a mile out, she decided to speak up again.
"The line of Slayers historically has had potentials. Young girls waiting for the call. Faith and I activated them and the ones who managed to make it to Sunnydale before they were picked off one by one by the First, fought with us. When I died it 2001, and was resurrected months later...I came back different than my former self. Less human. More instinctive. Before the battle with the First, I sought out the last of the Shadow Men, in the hopes of gaining more power to fight the First and spare my family and friends."
"You tried to merge again with the demon?" Oliver asked, and Buffy nodded.
"That was my plan, but at the end of the day I couldn't do It. As demon tried to merge with me, I fought it back and my power was sufficient to incapacitate it."
Malcolm hissed as Oliver's eyes widened in shock.
Buffy pulled up to the Manor and turned off the car before she tilted herself to the side so she could face Merlyn. "Faith has her own set of powers, and they are similar and different than my own. But the truth is this...I am the Chosen One. Faith's powers come not just from her Slayer line, but from the gifts her Father bestowed to her through his blood. My powers are solely those of the Shadow Demon. Do you want to know why the Powers that Be have allowed me to continue to return to the land of the living?"
"Why?" Oliver asked before Merlyn could speak up, as he was now painfully intrigued.
"Because outside of Sineya, the first Slayer...death has always been my gift. Death can't hold me, not unless I truly want it to. Of all the thousands of Slayers to walk this earth, I'm the closest incarnation of Sineya. And as long as I will it, evil will never win. You can take that to the bank."
Both men watched stunned, as the petite Slayer got out of the car, slammed the door and sauntered towards Wayne Manor, clearly not concerned that Merlyn might not choose to follow her. After a moment, Malcolm looked back at Queen and said hesitantly, "What have we gotten ourselves into?"
Oliver shook his head, as he was staring to ask himself that exact same thing.