Wesley walked by Gunn's office and noticed Buffy sitting alone on the couch. He smiled curiously and poked his head in. "Are you waiting for Gunn?"

Buffy looked up at him. "No. I'm just using his office to hide from my husband and his prodigy."

Wesley walked fully into the office. "Connor?"

"Spike."

"Ah. That makes sense."

"They're having the dumbest argument and I couldn't take anymore of it. So I'm hiding here."

"What's the argument about?"

Before Buffy could answer, Gunn walked singing Three Little Maids From School Are We. He didn't notice them at first, but when he finally spotted them, he switched up to a lame rap song he had clearly tried to make up on the spot. When he noticed Buffy's grin, he cleared his throat. "What's up, boss lady?"

"I feel like I should be asking you that." Buffy laughed. "You seem…."

"Unutterably cheery." Wesley finished.

"I am. I am. Look, I gotta be straight with you cause this is kinda blowing my mind."

"Tell us!"

"Fred and I are getting back together!" Wesley let out a startled gasp that he tried to cover up. "She was so keyed up from last night's fight, she asked me over. We ended up talking for hours like old times, then, all of a sudd…." Gunn started to laugh along with Buffy. "I can't even keep this up cause your face is gonna make me weep. Wes, I am so messing with you."

"I…. Oh…." Wesley sighed in relief and looked at Buffy. "I…."

"Come on! Brother gets a dig in. That's my right."

"So, you both know about…."

"It's on every Blackberry in the building. No secrets in the House of Pain."

"I spotted you guys kissing last night." Buffy added.

"And…." Wesley shifted nervously. "Is that all right with you, Gunn? Fred and me?"

"Last year, you wouldn't ask me that question. The man becomes civilized. It's cool. Our thing's long done, and I know how you feel about her."

"Thank you." Wesley look at Buffy again. "And the co-CEO is ok with an interoffice romance?"

"Are you kidding me?" Buffy grinned. "It's about damn time, Wes." Buffy said. "Angel and I can't be the only happy couple in the building."

"I need to add the necessary boilerplate, here," Gunn said. "You ever hurt her, I'm gonna kill ya like a chicken."

"I'll help."

"Acceptable terms." Wesley said with a sheepish grin.

"I'm glad you're here, boss lady. We can get on to the real fun." Gunn handed Buffy a file.

"Yes, you seemed like something was up before you made that tasteless and horrible joke at my expense."

"Lindsey McDonald?" Buffy asked, looking at the report in the file. "You know where the little twerp is?"

"Settle for was?" Gunn asked. Buffy shrugged. "He can hide from the Senior Partners, but not from the DWP and not from our many, many ears."

"He was living here?"

"Under the name of Doyle. The way he was messing with Spike and Angel, could be he had some other schemes laid out. Senior Partners took him out fast. I don't even think he had time to pack."

"Well, he did get sucked up into a portal that I'm pretty sure the Senior Partners opened."

"I'll let you tell Angel."

"Nope." She handed the file to Wesley. "One of you can tell him. I'm not going back in there." Buffy stood up. "In fact, I'm going to go see what Fred's up to in the lab. I'll tell her her boyfriend says hi." She giggled as Wesley blushed.

Down in the lab, Fred was circling a huge stone sarcophagus and talking with her assistant Knox. "You want me to get our HazMat's on this baby?" Knox was asking.

"Yeah, and see about where it came from." Fred said.

"Oh, hey Buffy!" Knox said as he walked out.

Fred turned to her friend. "Hi!"

"Whatcha got here?" Buffy asked, touching the top of the sarcophagus.

"It showed up last night already signed for. No idea where it came from."

"And it was delivered to the lab and not special acquisitions?"

"Weird, right?"

"Very. What's this?" Buffy spotted an iris with crystals decorating the area. She reached out and touched a purple crystal. Before Fred could reply, the iris suddenly opened and blew out a gust of air into Buffy's face. Buffy jumped back, coughing.

Knox rushed back into the lab as Fred rushed over to Buffy's side. "What happened?"

"I don't know!" Fred said.

Buffy let out another cough. "It opened and this air blew out at me."

"Are you ok?"

"Yeah. That was weird."

"We need to get you to medical." Knox said.

"Why?"

"You don't know what was in that dust. Or what's in that sarcophagus."

"I think I'll be ok. Slayer healing and all."

"I would feel better if you got a quick exam." Fred said.

Buffy sighed. "As long as it's quick. I've got work to do."

The doctors had given Buffy the all clear and she had returned to her now quiet office. She wasn't sure where Angel was, so she got back to work. A few minutes later, the doors burst open and Angel rushed in. "Buffy!"

Buffy looked up at him and smiled slightly. "Who won the fight?"

"Who cares? Are you ok?" He walked over to her and started feeling her forehead and pulse. "They said you were in medical."

"Yeah, for a little bit. I went down to visit Fred and I breathed some old mummy dust. Had to make sure I didn't discover any new germs."

"Are you ok?" He was still looking at her with worried eyes.

"Yeah. They kicked me out pretty quick since I'm mummy free. Thank god because I remember that mummy woman Xander was into that one time and I definitely don't want to even try to pull that look off."

Angel was still worried, pushing her hair back behind her back to feel her neck. To him she felt a little warmer than she should and her heart seemed to be moving a fraction slower. Before he could comment, Spike threw open the doors and strolled in. Buffy and Angel turned to look at him in surprise.

"Harmony just pulled me out of a very promising poker game down in Accounts Receivable, so this better be good." Spike announced. Angel looked confused for a moment, but remembered that he had called a meeting with Spike. Spike looked at Buffy and the way Angel was holding her. "Everything all right, pet?"

"I just had a run-in with mummy dust, but medical gave me the all clear." Buffy said.

"You sure? You're looking a bit pale."

"Guys, I'm fine. Seriously. What's going on? Is this about the astronaut/caveman debate?"

"Oh, by the way," Spike pointed at Angel, still concerned for Buffy. "All the guys down there agree that astronauts don't stand a chance against cavemen, so don't even start."

"Look, I can't do this anymore." Angel announced.

"Admitting defeat, are you?"

"You and me. This isn't working out."

"Are you saying we should start annoying other people?"

"I'm saying you should go."

"What?" Buffy asked.

"You really can't stand the competition, can you?"

"That isn't the….." Angel shook his head. "The way I figure it, Lindsey brought you back as a spirit bound to this place so you'd become invested in it. He only made you corporeal again once you'd gotten used to it, attached to it."

"I'm not attached. I just don't have anywhere else to go."

"Spike…." Buffy started, but Angel didn't hear her.

"What if you did?" He asked. "Look, Wolfram & Hart has got offices in every major city in the world, and a lot more out of it. I'll give you the resources you need to go anywhere: cars, gadgets, expense accounts. You fight the good fight, but in style. And, if possible, in Outer Mongolia."

"Roving agent." Spike said, rolling the idea around in his head. "Sort of a 007 without the poncy tux. Go anywhere I want?"

"Anywhere. Everywhere."

"Hmm…. Anywhere but here." Spike looked at Buffy and noticed she had a light sheen of sweat on her forehead. "Buffy, love, are you sure you're alright?" Angel turned to his wife just in time to see her cough up blood and collapse forward onto the desk. Angel and Spike both rushed to her side as she began convulsing. "I'll get medical!" Spike ran off while Angel lifted Buffy into his arms.

Buffy started to come to, the last thing she remembered being Angel telling Spike he needed to leave. She realized she was lying in a hospital bed in a private room at Wolfram & Hart's medical facility. Connor sat on one side holding her hand tightly while Angel sat on the other holding her hand and stroking her arm. She noticed the x-rays hanging on the wall first and then saw Spike, Gunn, Fred, Wesley, Lorne, and Knox gathered around her bed.

"What the hell happened?" Buffy croaked.

"Buffy!" Connor cried, hugging her tightly suddenly.

"Be gentle, Connor." Angel scolded. He swept Buffy's hair behind her ear and kissed her forehead. "Welcome back."

"Well, you sure gave us all a big scare, strudel." Lorne said.

"Yeah, you just need to rest. The lab is doing some blood work."

"Oh god, I'm a mummy, aren't I?" Buffy groaned.

"I've fought plenty of mummies, and none of them were as pretty as you. Almost none." Spike promised.

"When have you ever fought a mummy?" She looked around. "What's really going on with me?"

"You're sick, and you're making it worse by worrying." Angel said.

"We've got that sarcophagus under the scope." Knox said.

"If it gave you anything, we'll isolate it in a few hours and get you an antidote even quicker." Fred promised.

"So, you don't know what it is?" Buffy asked.

"Yet." Angel said. He held her hand just a little bit tighter. "We're gonna work this. Shouldn't take long."

"Have you called Willow and the gang?"

"Do you want me to?"

"Yes. They've got resources, too. And Willow definitely has more magic juice than anything we've got here."

"Ok. I'll give them a call." He turned to the others. "Let's get cracking." The others made their way out and Angel turned back to his wife. "How are you feeling?"

"I honestly don't know. What happened?"

"You don't remember?" Buffy shook her head. "Spike and I were talking and then you started coughing up blood and having a seizure."

Buffy blinked in surprise. "I've never had a seizure before."

"And you won't be having another." Connor said. "Dad and I will protect you."

"Best stepson ever." The blonde squeezed Connor's hand.

"I'm going to go call Willow." Angel said. "If you need me, just hit this button right there. I'll come running." He kissed her gently, holding her face in his hands. "I love you so much, Buffy."

"I love you, too."

Angel kissed her again and then reluctantly left her with Connor. He walked down the hallway and found everyone waiting for him. "How is she handling it?" Spike asked.

Angel rubbed his face for a moment. "She's keeping it together, but she knows it's bad."

"How bad?" Gunn asked. "What do we know?"

"Whatever she's got, it doesn't match up with any of the pathogens in our archives." Fred said. "It's mystical, and it's not ours."

"What about the sarcophagus?" Angel asked.

"My team is cross-checking the symbols, but it's also new territory for us." Wesley said. "Angel, what exactly is happening to her? You talked to the doctor…."

Angel stopped walking and took a deep breath, running his hand over his face again. It didn't stop the tears from forming. "Some parasitic agent is working its way through. I mean, as near as they can tell…. Her organs are cooking. In a day's time, they'll liquefy."

"No." Spike said. "Not her. Not again. We are not losing her again."

"Wes, you gotta tell me what was in that box." Angel's voice cracked with emotion. "I need a name, a history, anything."

"We can't get it open." Knox said. "Not even the lasers…."

"Where did it come from?" Wesley asked.

"It just showed up. No return address. Didn't recognize the guy who brought it in. Come to think of it, in the middle of the night."

"This was deliberate." Angel growled.

"Senior Partners?" Lorne asked.

"Doesn't add up, but I'll hit the White Room." Gunn said. "Talk to the conduit."

"Now, look, if the Senior Partners didn't do this, you gotta get them to help us." Angel pleaded.

"Any way I can."

"What about Doyle…. uh, Lindsey?" Spike asked. "The man likes to play his games."

"We've got his address. For all we know, he's probably sitting there laughing. And if there's muscle work to do…."

"Let's make it twice as fast."

"And baby makes three." Lorne said. "In case anybody feels like singing."

"Good. Guys…." Angel started.

"You don't have to say it." Wesley said.

"I have to." He took a deep, unneeded breath that hitched with emotion. "That's my wife in there. Buffy Summers, the love of my very long life. She is all I've ever wanted in the world and I just got her back. I will not lose her again. Save her life no matter the cost. Go."

Buffy had drifted off in her hospital bed with Connor curled up beside her. A saline drip was attached to her arm. She twitched and Connor sat up a little to look at her. Her skin tone had started to change to a splotchy gray and it felt cold and hard to the touch. He wondered if he should call his dad or the doctors.

Inside Buffy's mind, she could feel the parasite burning its way through her. It was incredibly painful, but she could fight this. She was the Slayer. She was powerful. She just had to find the parasite and confront it. Remembering her comatose state a few years back when Glory had taken Dawn and the lengths Willow had gone to trying to find her in her own mind, she decided to try and take a stroll through her psyche. See if she could figure something out.

Connor looked at the button his dad had told them to push, contemplating hitting it. Suddenly a bright light appeared and he had to squint his eyes against it. A form appeared in the middle and the light dimmed. He finally opened his eyes again and saw Willow standing there.

"Hey Connor!" Willow said by way of greeting. She walked over to Buffy's free side and picked up her hand. "How long has she been asleep?"

"About an hour." Connor said. "Do you know what's happening to her?"

"No. I'm hoping to find out, though." The redhead placed her fingers lightly on Buffy's temple and closed her eyes. When she opened them again, she found Buffy wandering through an abandoned temple. "What is this place?"

Buffy turned around, startled by her best friend's sudden appearance. "Will! How…."

"Teleported over after Angel called." She caught up with the blonde. "What is this place?"

"I don't know. I've never seen it before in my life. What did Angel say?"

"Why is there a temple you've never seen before floating around in your memories?"

"Will?"

"I mean…. Could it be from a Slayer dream or something? This doesn't look like it's from our dimension…."

"Will! What did Angel say?"

Willow sighed and took Buffy's hands. "It's really bad, Buffy. Whatever this thing is, it's…. It's cooking your insides."

"How long do I have?"

"Maybe a day." Buffy's face fell into her hands and she allowed herself to feel angry and scared for just a moment. Willow moved forward and hugged her best friend. "We're going to stop this, Buffy, I promise."

"I have to find this thing inside me and stop it."

"What?"

Buffy lifted her face from her hands. "I'm going to find this thing inside me and stop it. Will you help me?"

"Of course I will! That's what I'm here for." Willow looked around. "This place seriously doesn't look like it's from our dimension."

"I think this is the place we'll find this thing."

"How did you find it?"

"I did a mind walk like you taught me to do."

Willow smiled proudly. "Let's find this thing and do a mind walk in its brain!"

"No sign of Lindsey." Spike announced, throwing some books on the floor of the ex-lawyer's apartment.

"Look for plans." Angel demanded, opening the doors to the bedroom and walking in. "Well, I'll be damned all over again." Eve was sitting in bed, wearing a man's button-up dress shirt that she clutched against her.

She grabbed the sheets to her and recoiled toward the headboard. "Don't touch me!"

"Hiding out from the Senior Partners, Eve?" Angel growled. "How many sick days do you get before they dock you?"

"What do you want?"

"My wife is dying. Some mystical parasite. Ring a bell?"

"No, I don't know what you're talking about."

"What about your boyfriend, love?" Spike asked, moving towards her menacingly. "You got some wacky scheme brewing? Sending coffins about?"

"You two stay away from me!"

"Look, Eve, this happens quickly or very, very slowly." Angel growled, his eyes beginning to shift into vampire mode.

"Sarcophagus." Spike said. "Older than anything we know."

"Lindsey and I had nothing to do with that. I'm not lying. I…. I'm not. Have you heard from him? About him?"

The bleach blonde vampire rolled his eyes. "Oh, this is truly poetical."

"You're not saying what we need to hear." Angel's voice was low and dangerous.

"Why would we do anything to Buffy?" Eve demanded.

As Eve started to stand up, Lorne suddenly punched her in the face. "Ooh. Oh, I'm sorry. That was a knuckle-buster. I'm Jake LaMotta over here. It's pathetic. Oh." Lorne leaned in very close to Eve, getting right in her face. "Here's the thing, Eve: You're going to sing for me, and I'm going to read you right now. And here's one more thing: I haven't had the pleasure of knowing Buffy Anne Summers in person for very long, but in that time she has become my friend and a confidant and she's made my friend, Angel, here, happier than I've ever seen him. She's helped complete this family of ours in a way we never thought possible. She is worth about a million times more than you could ever dream of being. So, if I hear one note…. one quarter-note…. that tells me you had any involvement, these two won't even have time to kill you. Oh, and anything by Diana Warren will also result in your death…. Well, except 'Rhythm of the Night.'"

"I wanna help. I swear to you. I've got nothing against Buffy!"

"Say it with a song in your heart." Angel threatened.

Eve looked at the three men and then sighed and began to sing. Lorne looked at Angel. "She's clean."

"You've been wrong before." Angel pleaded.

Lorne hated seeing the desperation in his friend's eyes. "Yeah, and I might be now, but she reads clean. Her future's not too bright, but…."

"What do you mean?" Eve demanded.

"Well, nothing's written in stone lately, but, uh, if I was about to face your future, I'd make like Carmen Miranda and die." Lorne followed Spike and Angel towards the door. "Wait. Please! Are you going to tell the Senior Partners where I am?"

"Hell of a bargaining chip." Spike said, eyeing her.

"No, they can't help you. I mean it. If you're talking about a sarcophagus that doesn't match anything in our records…. There's nothing that's not in our records except what came before. The old ones."

"The original demons?" Angel asked. "Before humankind. They were all driven out of this dimension."

"The ones that were still alive. But long before that, they were killing each other all the time, and they don't die the way we do. Wesley may not know it, but his source books can conjure up anything, not just our own stock. Tell him to look for the texts that are forgotten, the oldest scrolls. You need to find the Deeper Well."

While Willow used her astral projection to explore the temple in Buffy's psyche, she was sitting with Connor in the hospital room flipping through books. She held one hand above an open book and flipped through it magically, absorbing the words. If it proved to be useless, she tossed it on the floor and Connor handed her another one.

"What's going on in her mind?" Connor asked.

"We're searching for this thing inside her." Willow said.

"Any luck?"

"Not really. There's this temple that has popped up in her mind, but it's nothing she's ever seen before. We figure if we search it, we might find whatever this thing is hiding in there."

He handed her another book. "What are you searching for in the books?"

"I'm trying to see if this temple exists somewhere in the real world. Maybe we could send someone to check it out."

Connor's phone pinged and he pulled it out. "It's dad. He said there's something called the Deeper Well."

In her mind, Willow apologized to Buffy and promised to be right back. In the real world, the witch spread her arms over the books and mumbled something in Latin. The books all slammed open as a wind kicked up that swept down the hallway. She was searching every book and file in the building on any mention of the Deeper Well.

Wesley came running in as he chased a book into the room. "What's happening?" He yelled.

Willow grabbed the book out of the air as her hair started to turn white. She mumbled again in a foreign language at the book and it slammed open in her lap. A moment later, pictures of the temple in Buffy's mind appeared along with words about what it belonged to.

"You found it!" Connor cried.

Willow released the spell and looked at the book below her. "Illyria." She read the words and then shoved the book at Wesley. Turning, she grabbed Connor's hand and touched Buffy's temple again.

"Buffy!" Connor rushed over to her and hugged her tightly.

"It's called Illyria." Willow announced. "It was some big time monarch and a warrior during the demon age. It was murdered by its rivals and left in its coffin in a place called the Deeper Well."

"Which is what?" Buffy asked. "This place?"

"No. This is Illyria's temple. The Deeper Well is a burial ground to all of the remaining old ones."

"What do we do?" Connor asked.

"Find her and fight her." Willow looked at Buffy. "You up for that?"

"I have to be because I'm not dying this way." Buffy said.

"We're here." Connor said, taking her hand. "We're not letting you die."

Wesley stood with Angel, Spike, Fred, Gunn, and Lorne in Buffy's medical room. Willow, Buffy, and Connor were locked in Buffy's mind, forming a circle with their connected hands. Angel stood at the foot of the bed staring at his wife. Her skin was starting to turn gray and it was developing a slight sheen to it.

"This isn't merely an infection." Wesley was saying. "Buffy's skin is hardening like a shell. I think she's being hollowed out so this thing can use her to gestate, to claw its way back into the world. That's speculation. Either way, she dies."

"Do we have any chance of finding this Deeper Well?" Angel asked.

"I already have. It's in England, in the Cotswolds. That's the location, to the inch. Xander and Mr. Giles are already on their way with a group of Slayers as it should have a guardian. Maybe several."

"How do we know going there's gonna do squat?" Gunn asked.

"The Deeper Well is almost like a prison for the dead. If something gets out, it's written it can be drawn back from the source."

"That's our shot." Angel said. "What exactly is Willow doing?"

"I'm in Buffy's mind helping her locate this thing and fight it from the inside." Willow said. Her eyes were still closed, so it startled the people in the room. "I think we're close."

"Do you need help?" Angel asked. "Can you handle that?"

"Please, I sucked up every magic book at the Magic Box, almost destroyed the world single-handedly, and created an army of Slayers. I can handle one more mind-walker. Take Connor's hand and touch Buffy's shoulder with your other."

Lorne gently touched Buffy's leg. "If nobody thinks it's too ridiculous, I'm going to pray."

"No, it's appreciated." Wesley said. "Time is not on our side."

"Nobody's on our side." Spike said. "I'm coming with you." He took Connor's free hand and held his other out for Angel.

Angel nodded and took Spike's hand. "Let's do this."

They blinked their eyes and found themselves in a desolate room connected to a large temple of sorts. "What the bleedin hell is this place?"

"It must be Illyria's." Angel said. They stepped out into the great room and joined Buffy, Willow, and Connor.

"Welcome to Raiders of the Lost Ark." Buffy quipped. Angel rushed over to her and hugged her tightly. "I'm ok." She assured him. "My body feels different, but my mind is as strong as ever."

"This place is like a weird maze that always leads back to this room." Connor said.

"Must be something important in here." Spike said, looking around.

"Is it just me, or is your hair turning blue?" Angel asked, gently running his fingers through her blonde tresses. There were faint traces of blue streaks.

"What?" Buffy pawed at her hair urgently.

Suddenly a wind picked up and Buffy shivered. She felt cold all of a sudden. None of the others seemed to even notice that there was a wind around them. Buffy turned to look around the room and saw a flash of something moving in a room that definitely hadn't been there a moment ago. She moved towards it, hoping it was her enemy and that they could defeat it before it killed her.

"Buffy?" Angel looked around and realized his wife was gone.

"Where'd she go?" Connor asked.

"Willow?"

Willow shook her head. "She was just right here!"

"Buffy!" Angel called, looking around frantically.

"What's that?" Spike asked, walking over to a large dome shape in the very center of the great room. The others followed him.

"That wasn't here before." Willow insisted, still looking around for any sign of her best friend.

"It's glass." Connor said as he touched it. "I can't see anything through it." He put a little more force on it and the glass shattered. Inside the dome was a sarcophagus. "Is that…."

"That's the one from the lab." Angel said. "It's open!"

"That must mean Ilyria is around here somewhere." Spike said. "And it got Buffy."

Connor moved around the broken dome and caught a flash of golden hair out of the corner of his eye. He turned towards the flash, but didn't see Buffy. He turned his head slightly away and saw a shimmer where the flash of gold had been. Moving towards the shimmer with his head still turned, he discovered another door. It was an optical illusion that you could only see with the right head tilt. "Guys!"

On the other side of the door, Buffy was staring at a large, tentacled armored demon. She knew it was Illyria and it was awake. "You won't win." She told the thing. "Not against me."

The tentacles moved slightly and a deep hiss of a voice said, "I thought the humans would have long died out by now. Instead, you've grown bold."

"You have no idea."

"You are my shell."

"No. I'm a Slayer. I'm the Slayer."

"You are nothing."

"I love it when hellspawn tell me that. Usually means I'm going to win."

"Not this time, little bug. Soon enough I will be reborn and you will cease to exist."

Buffy heard the pounding on the door and the shouts of her name. She desperately wanted that door to open, but it had locked tight behind her. Suddenly, the thing popped open and her husband, stepson, Spike, and her best friend came rushing in. Buffy's brow furrowed at them.

"Is that…." Willow started.

"Bloody hell." Spike said.

"Buffy, are you ok?" Angel asked.

"I wanted that to happen and it did." Buffy muttered to herself. She held out her hand and imagined her Slayer Scythe in her grip. It appeared there suddenly. "We're in my mind!"

"Um…. Yeah. That's how Big Red got us here." Spike said.

"That thing is infiltrating my mind, but it's still my mind." Buffy turned to Willow. "I know those dreams were insane, but we need to do that mind meld thing we did against Adam."

Willow glanced at Illyria nervously. "I don't want to leave you alone in here with that thing."

Buffy gripped Willow's hand. "It hasn't taken over entirely. I'm still here. And if I'm going to stay that way, I need everyone's help. Please."

After a moment, Willow nodded. "Ok. It won't take long to set up." She broke the link and Buffy was alone with Illyria again.

"Tiny mortal," Illyria hissed. "Your efforts are wasted. My coming is foretold."

"I'm not much for prophecies." Buffy growled back, twirling her scythe.

Angel watched over Buffy while Willow and Wesley gathered everything they needed for the mind meld spell. Connor was sitting in the chair beside Buffy's bed and he looked like he was praying. Spike stood in the doorway explaining what they were about to go through. He hadn't been a part of the spell the first time around, but he remembered seeing the group while they were in it.

A noise behind Spike made them all turn to find Faith standing there. "She's going to really hate that blue hair." The brunette Slayer said.

"What are you doing here?" Angel asked, opening his free arm to hug her.

"Got wind of what was happening to B. Thought I would lend a hand. Hey there, Con."

"Hey Faith." Connor said, looking up for the first time in a while.

"Not sure how much you can do, love." Spike said. "That thing's eating her from the inside out and it's made its way into her mind."

Faith nodded. "Well, I'm here. Two Slayers are better than one."

"Oh, Faith!" Willow said, walking in with her arms full of candles. "Glad you made it."

"Wouldn't miss the chance to save Blondie." Faith looked around. "How bad is it guys? Is she going to pull out of this?"

Willow and Angel exchanged worried looks, but Willow nodded emphatically. "Yes. We're going to make sure she does."

Faith nodded. "Look, uh…. If this goes south…. If it looks like B isn't going to make it, you think you could move that thing into me."

"Faith…." Angel started.

"It would kill you even if I could." Willow said, cutting Angel off. "I've already thought about a transfer spell to put Illyria back in her box, or even into a new box, but I can't find anything that would work on an Old One."

"We can't let her die." Faith said.

"We won't."

"I didn't get it…. What it was like to be her. Even when I took over her body and her life, I still didn't get it. I only got a taste of it when things went south back in Sunnydale and they nominated me to be their new Buffy. I couldn't handle it. I screwed up horribly. Got some of those girls killed…. This world needs Buffy more than it needs me, you know? Maybe we could switch bodies and I go out instead of her?"

"Faith, she wouldn't want that." Angel said.
"I know that! But it's not like she's got much choice in the matter. She would be mad, sure…. Not like I'm not used to the wrath of B…. But she would be here to carry on."

Willow touched Faith's hands and stilled their nervous wringing. "We're going to save her. She came up with the idea to do a mind meld like we did when we went up against Adam. It gave her unimaginable strength and power. It should work in flushing this old demon out of her and back into hell where it belongs."

"What do you need me to do?"

Wesley and Fred walked in with more supplies and helped Willow set the spell up on the floor at the base of Buffy's hospital bed. Spike shut and locked the door, keeping his back against it. Willow instructed Angel and Connor to sit together on the opposite side of the circle from her. Wesley and Fred sat to her left, facing Buffy's hospital bed, and Willow instructed Faith to sit beside her.

"The power of the Slayer and all who yield it. Last to ancient first, we invoke thee. Grant us thy domain and primal strength. Accept us in the power we possess. Make us mind and heart and spirit joy. Let the hand encompass us. Do thy will." Willow intoned. She held up a card and had Faith hold it with her. "Spiritus. Spirit."

Angel and Connor took the card Willow held out. "Animus. Heart."

"Sophus. Mind." Fred and Wesley said, taking their card.

"And Manus." Willow laid the card down on the side of the circle closest to Buffy's bed. "The hand. We enjoin that we may inhabit the vessel, the hand, daughter of Sineya, first of the ones, we implore thee, admit us, bring us to the vessel, take us now!"

Buffy was dodging out of the way of tentacles that were whipping at her face and body. She did her best to slice and dice with her scythe, succeeding in cutting off a few. Suddenly she stiffened and her vision became high definition. She heard the familiar voices in her head. When the tentacles flew at her, she simply waved her hand and they became water or butterflies. Illyria screamed in pain and anger as Buffy moved towards her calmly. When the blonde Slayer reached out towards Illyria, she touched the center of the thing's chest. A yellow and blue light swirled outward and enveloped them both.

The spell was broken when Buffy started screaming and thrashing in her bed. Angel and Connor were there trying to restrain her. Faith and Spike jumped in a moment later. They couldn't hold her, though. Her strength was suddenly endless. Angel and Connor went through the wall. Faith took out medical equipment and Spike went through the door.

"What's happening?" Fred yelled over the screaming.

"I don't know!" Willow cried.

Angel was back up and trying to hold Buffy down. Her hair was streaked with more blue and the few times her eyes were open, they were a light, cloudy blue instead of their greenish-hazel. Angel's panic rose as he listened to her heart rate slow down to almost nothing. The few monitors that were still attached to her had started screeching their alarms as everything began to flatline. A doctor came in and tried to tend to Buffy, but she punched him into the one wall that hadn't been destroyed. Nurses tried to pierce her skin, but the needles just bent or broke off before the nurses went flying.

Security personnel started streaming into the room with guns drawn, but Spike, Faith, and Connor kept them at bay. Just as suddenly as it had started, Buffy stopped screaming and went deathly still. Angel looked at the monitors showing no signs of life and began shaking his head as he rushed to her. "No! No! Buffy!" He held her in his arms and shook her. "Come on, wake up! Don't do this to me! Wake up, damn it!"