The Cage -- part 7 of The Island of Galleno (Only a man who has felt ultimate despair is capable of feeling ultimate bliss.)
by Isabelle
Rating: R (for cursing, mild nudity, adult situations and violence)
Disclaimers: BTVS belong to Joss Whedon, ME, and UPN they are being used for entertainment, I don't own them. The Count of Monte Cristo belongs to AlexandreDumas--Spike's journey was taken from the idea of the book and is used in the skeleton of the Series. The lyrics to this part belong to Garbage, The World is not Enough.
Summary: The moment that Spike finally has Buffy he is vamp-napped by Riley and a new officer, Jack Marshall and sent to the Island of Galleno off the Moroccan coast where all the leftovers of the Initiative are being placed. Buffy frantically looks for Spike but gets news that he was 'accidentally killed' by Jack, who decides to make Sunnydale his residence. The whole thing is Spike trying to get back to Sunnydale and Buffy thinking he's dead. It's filled with exotic places, tons of Original Characters, mysticism, enchantment, magic and love. It takes him years to find out who he is before he can find the one he loves.
Spoilers: Set after Normal Again, Season 6
Feedback: bih80reviews@yahoo.com
Archiving: Carnal Sins, DeathMarkedLove, and Only Time--all others please ask.
A/N: This chapter is mostly Spike, exploration of his anger, frustration and humanity.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear."
Ambrose Redmoon
He stared at his opponent, emitting a growl from the depths of his chest. The thin demon cracked his neck and grinned.
He said nothing, there was no more dance left in him.
The bell rang, he jumped on the balls of his feet.
One swing.
The demon ducked, but he knew he was going to duck so his knee was waiting for his face.
The demon groaned in pain as blood ran down his face from a broken nose.
The crowds cheered.
The creature was already vulnerable so it gave him his momentum.
Two punches, three, four, five, six, seven... they all started blending together as the demon just stared at him with glassy eyes--clearly not expecting the rage behind the punches of the vampire.
Fifteen punches, then he grabbed him and threw him across the cage with such force that the bamboo sticks cracked and stabbed the fading demon.
Picking him up again he roared in his face, vamping out and gripping his head with both hands he snapped it's neck so quick the crowds gasped.
Blank clouded eyes started back into the nothingness.
Soft body sliding to the floor at his feet.
He cracked his jaw and backed away from it to look at the crowds.
They cheered with a fury at the bloody display.
Spike!! Spike!! Spike!!
This was his second win and he was gaining crowd favor but he could care less. This only meant 3 fights from the map--and that was all.
Archie met him at the doorway as it opened for the winner.
Pats on the back and laughter.
"A bit more brutal next time, perhaps?" Archie asked him.
Spike took his shirt and pulled it over his head. "He entered the tournament--he died. He was killed of his own volition."
Archie raised his eyebrows and nodded. "Well put."
I know how to hurt
I know how to heal
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I know what to show
And what to conceal
I know when to talk
And I know when to touch
No one ever died from wanting too much
"Where's my big boy?" she cooed at him.
William lay on his back completely naked as she powdered him, after changing some god-awful diaper.
William's leg kicked and his little arms swung about, a smile cracking his face.
"Is that him? Is that my baby?" she blew soft raspberry kisses on his belly and he laughed even more.
Mommy was so silly... not as silly as uncle Xander but silly.
She grabbed his little foot and play bit it, making him laugh again. "Yummy, William tastes so good, don't you, baby?"
He smiled back at her.
He liked when she gave him all of her attention, he didn't like, however when that other man was there. She ignored him when he was there and he was left to play with his inanimate toys.
"Now, we're going to get you all nicely dressed for the rehearsal dinner." she pulled out two outfits and showed them to him. One was pale blue with little stars. He hated it. The other was a pant and polo black shirt set. Much better. "Which do you think? Baby blue like your eyes or this one?"
He really wanted to signal for the pants and shirt instead of the nasty blue jumpsuit.
His mommy jumped in excitement. "Baby blue jumpsuit it is!"
Great, he got the poofy outfit. If he could only talk.
"Soon you'll have a new daddy..."
Where was his old daddy? He knew what he smelled like but he didn't know what he looked like.
"And Jack adores you..."
That was that dork he didn't like.
"He's not Spike... but he loves us, William... you like him don't you?"
He started crying.
She promptly picked him up and held him against her soft chest.
Food. Was all he could think as he searched out her bosom.
"You're hungry? Again?" she sighed and sat down on their rocking chair.
He was quite pleased when the nourishing nipple was found by his lips and he closed his eyes contented.
She smelled like his dad.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The world is not enough
But it is such a perfect place to start, my love
And if you're strong enough
Together we can take the world apart, my love
FINAL Day of the Cage
Fist met horns and he growled, it hurt, burned but he didn't care that his hand was destroyed. He loved the pain. Fell in love with the pain, lived by the pain.
He growled and grabbed his opponent's head and bashed it with his own.
His fangs were out, and his ridges showing--he didn't care.
He just wanted to loose control, to drown in his recklessness--he could hear the crowds faintly chanting in the background and that only made his demon roar.
The 'indestructible' Groker had small little horns on his head and they stabbed him--more than a hundred at a time like the pain sizzling inside of him and he loved it even more.
He banged his head again, scraping skin and bone.
The pain, intense and beautiful.
Sweet distracting pain, filled him--this empty vessel that was him.
It coursed through him and he kicked him and threw him again at the bamboo fence, grabbing his neck and squeezing, making his opponent's head pop like a red balloon.
A red balloon of guts, fist and fangs, horns and scales.
It was a black night--like those that humans are scared of. He was the demon out there.
Banging the demon's head over and over and over and over against the bamboo--the cage had been restored twice since William the Bloody stepped inside of it.
This seemed like the third as the head went through it and left a demon hanging limp, a bamboo stick running right through his throat.
Spike stared at his mess, breathing rhythmically in and out.
His chest was a mess, he had broken his left hand and he was sure he had a concussion.
He cracked his neck and smiled. Fangs dripping blood.
The crowds cheered.
He turned to look at them and lifted his arms--Rocky style.
They cheered even more.
He looked around proudly.
So this was power.
The door to the cage opened and he walked out, women wanting to throw themselves at him, he passed by without a second glance.
Instead of finding Archie he pulled himself up on top of the cage and started climbing it.
The crowds went crazy.
He walked to the top and on shaky feet he looked down at what seemed like a sea of people.
The cage was three stories high--the highest man-made structure on the island.
Up three stories high--up in the air, on top of his world he stood.
Here, he was the king of the world.
Here he didn't need her or her memories....
He raised his arms again and smiled smugly as the crowds cheered.
"I AM SPIKE!" he screamed.
Screams and roars were heard along with chanting over and over.
Spike, Spike, Spike, Spike, Spike, Spike
People like us Know how to survive
There's no point in living If you can't feel alive
We know when to kiss
And we know when to kill
If we can't have it all Then nobody will
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Now, look at me..." Willow straightened her up.
Buffy took a deep breath as Willow fixed her eye makeup. "I can't believe this is happening."
Willow smiled at her as she finished applying her fourth coat of mascara. "This is what you've always wanted, a normal guy and a normal life... no slayage."
Buffy bit her lip out of anxiety.
"No vampires, no demons, no hellgods..."
No vampires, she thought. Angel and Spike were for another life--another girl. This was the new her. But how could she deny it when every time she looked at her son she saw Spike?
"Right... none of that..."
Willow studied her. "You okay, Buffy?...You don't have to do this, you know, monetary problems always work themselves out."
Buffy laughed. "Don't be silly, Willow. He loves me--"
"Do you love him?" she asked the bride-to-be.
Buffy looked away and to the other side of the room where her baby was being cooed by both Tara and Dawn. He was having a delightful time, in an outfit Spike would've hated.
"He deserves a dad..." she looked at her friend. "I deserve someone normal...someone who can love me..."
"Is Spike William's father?" Willow asked bluntly.
All the color left Buffy's face and she gaped at her friend.
Willow got her answer as tears filled Buffy's eyes. "Why didn't you tell us?"
Suddenly her nails were the most interesting thing in the world.
"Buffy--"
"Willow, just leave it, ok? He's gone...he's de-dead... our child deserves a stable home and that's what I'm going to give him." she said sadly. "Besides.... I am no longer the Slayer... vampires don't exist in my world..."
"Did you love him?" Willow asked, holding both of Buffy's shaking hands.
She took a deep breath. "Still do..."
"Then why are you marrying Jack?" Willow asked almost desperately.
Buffy shook her head and composed herself. "Because, Willow... I'm moving on, Will...he's been gone for almost a year...he's not coming back."
She married Jack that night and had her normal family.
The world is not enough
But it is such a perfect place to start, my love
And if you're strong enough
Together we can take the world apart, my love
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He had become the island celebrity.
Everywhere he went he was loved and admired. Men respected him, demons didn't mess with him, vampires thought him their god.
And he was enjoying it much more than he led on, after he was almost bed-ridden for a month he was back on his feet and truly enjoying the free beer, the free shows from the can-can girls.
The life before seemed so far away... so far away.
He was even beginning to ignore Archie and just spent his nights in town, drinking and laughing and simply forgetting.
Life was well. Until four months after the tournament when he walked to his hut, swaying from side to side, stumbling over rocks and rascals on the floor, he hardly made it to his bed when he started dreaming...dreaming of a place so far away that it hurt him.
It hurt him....
There-- under the light of the moon, he felt a warm body against his. Smiling against his neck and him chuckling because of some silly valley-girl joke of hers.
"They're going to flip," she smiled.
"I can't wait to see the whelp's face," he laughed. She swatted him playfully.
"You're terrible," she joked.
He pulled her closer, his duster covered them in the expanse of the night. "Yeah, but you love me because of it."
She shuddered and placed her hands on either side of his face, making him look at her as she hovered over him. "And don't you forget it...promise me you won't forget it."
There were tears in her eyes, tears of the future uncertain. What night was she not going to come home from patrol? What night would she leave him alone?
"I promise."
I promise--those words haunted him as he woke up. There were tear tracks on his face.
That night... that single night.
He howled as he came to consciousness. Sobbing again--he hadn't cried in a long time.
Just tears of pain and frustration.
I...I feel safe
I...I feel scared
I...I feel ready
And yet unprepared
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was 4:15AM when Spike yanked Archie's door open.
The elder vampire jumped from bed and looked around startled.
"William?"
Candles were lit in his hut and he could see the younger vampire as he sat down across from his bed.
"What the hell happened to you, William? You look like hell." the older one commented as he placed his glasses on his face.
Spike sat back and lit a cigarette.
"I had an epiphany," he said.
Archie grabbed his shirt and shoved it over his head. "So you didn't forget the common folk then?" It has been over two months since Spike had come to see Archie.
Spike had the decency to look guilty. "Sorry, mate... I just..."
"I know, and I knew it was coming. I'm smart like that." Archie smiled and Spike chuckled. "So we're back on track then? Boat? Treasure? Escape?"
Spike nodded. "We'll start at dawn..." that name tasted weird in his mouth. "If not for her... then for nibblet--I promised once that I would take care of her and I will not leave 'er now."
"Then we continue."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
How does one stop being the Slayer?
The council has passed on the responsibility to Faith as she was taken out of the California State Penitentiary.
The Powers That Be took her strength away--Oracles had foretold about this.
So at the age of 22, Buffy Summers was relieved of her duty.
Here she stood before a stove.
After saving the world countless times she had no idea how to be a house wife.
The chicken was staring at her like it would bite. She looked over at her son who was peering at her with clear blue eyes as he chewed on a rubber duck. He was happily hanging on a baby swing with nothing on but diapers.
"Mommy's stuck," she announced.
He smiled at her. His mommy could never do anything wrong.
She laughed. "This is serious, William. You don't have to worry 'cause your dinner still comes from my tit...but not Jack's...or mine."
He kicked his little chubby feet and threw the rubber duck at her. It hit her leg and she picked it up, walking to him.
He was delighted to get him mom's full attention and laughed, holding out his little arms for her to pick him up.
She gave in and hefted him up. Making a face and checking the back of his diaper. "You need a change."
He offered her a dripping finger for chewing. "No thanks," she smiled and kissed his neck. He giggled. "C'mon--"
The phone interrupted her and she grabbed it while giving William a toy for entertainment. His little lips made a perfect 'o' in amazement. He liked this blue chewable square.
"Hello," she asked.
"Buffy?"
"Hey Jack," she smiled at William going cross-eyed as he stuffed the square in his mouth.
"Honey, listen... I won't make it home for dinner...we had an emergency dinner meeting."
She sighed.
"Jack you haven't been home for dinner in over a week," she frowned and William smiled.
"I know, baby, but things always come up when you work with the mayor..."
"Fine, whatever...." she rolled her eyes.
"I'll make it up next week, Buffy--I promise, I have to go." he said quickly. "Kiss Jacob for me."
"It's Will--" he hung up. "iam." she said to herself.
Hanging up the phone she looked at her baby. "I guess it's just you, me and Dawn tonight again, baby."
William grinned at her. "If I didn't know better I'd think that you didn't like Jack."
She didn't see the twinkle in his eyes.
The world is not enough
But it is such a perfect place to start, my love
And if you're strong enough
Together we can take the world apart, my love
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"So it's possible, then?" Spike asked.
Archie nodded as he hunched over a map with a magnifying glass in his hand over the map of the Black Lake.
"Certain precautions must be taken and protections spells are essential but you can definitely do it."
Spike paced back and forth. They had been working non-stop for five months. "I have a good feeling about this, old man--a very good feeling."
Archie sat back and grinned at him. "Never thought I'd go treasure hunting before."
Spike chuckled and swat his back. "Let's take the boat out for a test, shall we?"
Archie nodded and watched his eager companion walk out of the tent.
June 9th, 2003
He is changing. The final stages of the evolutionary process will come to play. I can tell by the way that he straightens automatically when he addresses me, I can tell by the way he chooses his books to read. When at first he wanted short works like Animal Farm (which simply got him upset) now he's choosing Plato, Aristotle and the classics. The human mind is very much like the demon mind, I think. They both develop at the same rate.
When a human first grows an adult conscious, in their teens they are reckless. Wild and untamed--thinking they own the world with their ideals and philosophies. The same is with a freshly turned vampire. They want to wreck havoc--make the streets bleed. They disrespect their elders and only by change do few live past the vampiric age of 25.
As the human grows into adulthood many things open their eyes. Money, fame, prestige, love--things to pursue. Same with vampires in the ages of 25-40. Taking over the world, towns, city, establishment. It's all about getting to the top.
Once the human and the vampire get to the top they realize either one of two things. That this is not what they want and they become loners or they relish the powers for some time to come.
The latter is what happened to William. He lived for over 100 yrs in power, having the one creature he loved by his side, a stable nasty environment that he simply loved. It is my theory that he would've stayed in that perpetual high of he had not run across the Slayer. She brought out what all vampires repress throughout their eternity. She brought out his humanity. It has come to my conclusion that all vampires have humanity in them--only a few get to explore it. They let the demon take complete control over them until there is nothing left of the human but long lost memories. It is the feelings, emotions and conflicted thoughts that Buffy Summers brought out in William.
Realizing that he loved her--loved that one creature who had done this to him, though he wanted to hate her William is too much of a poet and he transcended all of his feelings to love. Having her return his affections made him complete. The vampire had reached his karma --the heightened point of his life. The perfection.
All of the sudden that tranquility is taken away. It is then that the conflict of the human and the demon really come to play. Having no soul William can't just grieve and move on with his life--something that a normal human could do. She was everything to him, she was his soul and now that that part is dead there is an unfamiliar emptiness within him that caused the anger phase, the hopelessness and now the revenge.
Revenge will be his soul now. There is no other way that he can live. The demon has been completely subsided when he became complete and now all he is running with is memories trapped in a cage. A hollow cage that holds everything he is.
Will he ever find peace? I cannot theorize further and probably never will know, since I will not leave with William. I can only hope that one day he can find peace, my fear is knowing that when that happens it will mean his death. The only peace that is found is if he gives up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The world is not enough
The world is not enough
No, nowhere near enough
The world is not enough
"Send in Mr. Marshall," the general told the soldier.
"Yes, general."
The young officer disappeared behind the door and came back in swiftly with Jack.
"General Polis, sir." Jack saluted.
"No need soldier... now a civilian," the general smiled and walked around his desk to shake the younger man's hand.
"Thank you, sir." Jack answered automatically.
"Congratulations on the wedding," the general offered Jack a cigar and lit one for himself.
Jack lighted his own and smiled in appreciation for the quality of it.
"Thank you, general... she's quite a handful," Jack said, taking a seat across the General.
"Your country is very proud of you, son--we know this is a great sacrifice." the General smiled. "But we can guarantee a nice 2008 election year for you."
Jack smiled. "Anything for that, sir--anything for that." They both laughed. "Plus--she's a pretty little thing."
The General agreed. "That she is, son--you hang in there it'll be over before you know it."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
TBC....
(bring on the Jack hatred...)