Title: Vengeance Satisfied is Justice Served 5/?
Author: 3D Master
Feedback: 3d.master@chello.nl
Website:
Rating: R
Keywords: X-over BtVS/The Crow, drama, action.
Time frame: S7, starts during dirty girls.
Summary: Buffy has a choice to make: Xander or Spike? Who gets to live? XanderZone Challenge response.
Disclaimer: Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its characters do not belong to me, but to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy Productions. The Crow and related concepts are created by James O'Barr.
Vengeance Satisfied is Justice Served
Chapter 5: Angel of Death
Willow walked into the hospital room that the nurse had said contained the most potentials. Of the thirteen potentials Buffy had taken, six were heavily wounded, one was dead, and two more mildly wounded. Who was who though, Willow didn't know. Willow's heart broke when she saw the state they were in, they had their asses handed to them. Rona to the left had a broken arm, and she had a stab wound in her shoulder. There were several more stab wounds, and one broken leg. Willow felt sad, hollow. She could have been there, her magic probably would have allowed to kick this priest's ass, at the very least offer equal footing, but she was tuck protecting the ones left in the house.
Then she saw Kennedy, sitting next to Rona - the most heavily wounded - of them all. When Willow saw that Kennedy was basically ok, relief flooded her and she quickly went over to her girlfriend. Willow felt that Kennedy's presence there wasn't just lending strength to Rona, all of the other potentials benefitted from it. Where was Buffy though? She had heard about Spike getting attacked, but he was back at the house already, and she had met Faith on the way down here, she was pacing outside the operating room where one of the SiTs with internal bleeding had been wheeled off too. She'd seen the haunted look in the raven-haired slayer, and she'd surprised herself when she had given Faith a hug, almost ending the world had a way of looking differently at the relatively mild crimes of the Slayer, and she'd had lots more excuses and reasons behind her behavior.
When Willow reached Kennedy she quickly wrapped her arms around the potential, and held her very close. "Thank the goddess," Willow whispered, as Kennedy's arms wrapped around her. Willow then pulled her head from Kennedy's shoulder and looked at the other potentials. "Mind if I steal her from you guys for a few moment?" They smiled and made shooing gestures. Willow smiled back and pulled Kennedy out of the room.
The two of them walked a short distance until they found a small space with some privacy. Willow caught Kennedy's lips in a quick, but passionate kiss. "I was so worried," Willow whispered with relief.
"Only me?" Kennedy choked out.
Willow looked up and saw her girlfriend's eyes misting up. "Of course not, but you're special," Willow told her softly.
"Doesn't help Jennifer any, her neck is still broken," Kennedy choked out before breaking down crying on Willow's shoulder. The redhead held her close, making soothing sounds with her mouth, and gently pulled the raven-haired girl over to a few chairs, and sat down with her. "God, Willow, we were so completely unprepared. Nobody even knew what the insides looked like. Th-this C-Caleb, he smacked slayers around like they were nothing. The only reason why the rest of us are still here is because we got lucky: some guy came to help us."
"Some guy?" Willow asked, already having a good idea who that was.
"Used guns," Kenned whimpered, a bitter tone slipping in. "I didn't even know they could be effective against these things. Four shots, three Bringers dead. Ordered us to retreat and we luckily did. He was all in black, I-I think is face was painted."
"Xander," Willow whispered, recognizing the 'all in black' from that morning, and then realizing her screw up. Kennedy jerked back and looked at Willow, searching her features not knowing what to think. Willow decided to come clean. "The man who saved you was Xander. He came to me this morning, he's been resurrected, sent back to the world to set the wrong things right, he said," Willow said softly, a big smile on her face and in her eyes. Kennedy looked perturbed. "Trust me, Ken, I know Xander. He's not evil, and he's not a demon, he's not a vampire either . . . I checked, staked him but good, no harm to him at all."
"Y-you sure?" Kennedy asked, a mixture of doubt, elation, fright and optimism running across her face, and laced in her voice.
Willow nodded, and said, "But don't tell anyone else yet. Xander's asked me to do that spell we've been searching for. I think he's planning something that requires the others not to know yet he's back."
Kennedy looked into Willow's eyes, and slowly felt a smile creep up her face, which then lowered again, when she was reminded of her sadness. "Will, it was so hard in there, in their room. I had to be there for them, keep smiling reassuring them everything was going to be fine, and all I wanted to do was cry myself."
"I know, that's why I took you out of there for a while," Willow mumbled, tightening her embrace a little. "I felt so proud of you standing there giving them your strength." Willow felt Kennedy tighten the hug, and she felt gratified by it. "We're going to win this, don't worry. Now that Xander is back Caleb and the First won't stand a chance."
Kennedy nodded, and they shared another kiss, before the two walked back to the room with potentials. "Have you seen Buffy?" Willow asked worried.
"Not really," Kennedy answered Willow. "I know she's around somewhere, I've seen her peek past the door but nothing else." Willow nodded, when a brightly smiling Faith came bounding down the corridor. "She's . . .?" Kennedy let the question hang there. Faith nodded as she pulled the other two women along, and they reached the room with the potentials soon after.
"Guys, good news," Faith said with a grin, the potentials looked up at her with home. "Brenda is going to be fine, she won't be able to fight with us anymore, but she's going to be fine. Apparently the hospital is going to evacuate, because the rest of the Sunnydale population is doing the same, and they'll take her along." There were several howls of happiness and relief coming from the potentials, which were rudely interrupted when a scowling Buffy entered the room.
"What's all the yelling about?" she asked darkly.
"Brenda is going to be fine," Rona answered automatically.
Buffy nodded, "Good, she can concentrate on healing up, like you should too, we're going to need every able bodied fighter." The Buffy turned around and started walking away.
"She won't," Faith said bitterly. "Brenda won't heal up quickly enough to fight. She'll be taken out of Sunnydale when the town evacuates." Buffy turned her head slightly to her right, looking half to the floor, and half and Faith, then nodded and walked away. After rounding a corner Buffy held her stomach, as sobs wracked her body, wishing Xander was still alive to comfort her.
*****
Dawn walked along the street. The sun had just come up. She hadn't gotten a lot of sleep, researching the priest where he got his strength from, and anything on the identification of the mysterious stranger that had apparently saved all of their lives . . . except Jennifer's. It wasn't fair, why did everyone who Dawn liked have to die? Her mother, Tara, Xander, and now Jennifer. She had enjoyed the black-haired girl's company, had started to consider her a friend even. Dawn felt tears flowing from her eyes, once again. She wondered if she could ever run out of them. Finally in the morning she come to the startling realization that nobody had gone to Xander's apartment yet, everyone wrapped up in stopping the Apocalypse . . . if that was even what the First wanted. Nobody had gone to see if he might have had something useful lying around in his apartment, or any mementos . . . a will.
When she was close enough to Xander's apartment building she looked at his room and was startled when she saw light burning in one window. It couldn't be Willow, she knew she was still in the house, apparently extremely excited about some kind of spell she had found, Dawn hadn't really payed attention. She knew Anya was busy teaching the SITs something, who was left who had a key? Buffy? Nah, her sister was just too much wrapped up in her vampire fantasy boyfriend. Perhaps she shouldn't have threatened to make Spike wake up ablaze, and simply have done it. Dawn shook the pleasant fantasy away, the light was the important thing. She could go get Buffy, better yet Faith . . . Dawn shook her head, and put her hand in her coat. She fingered the cross, the holy water and took a hold of the stake. She could do this alone. As she cautiously moved forward, she missed the big black bird up above, squawking.
*****
Xander grinned as he saw the girl stalking along through the crow's eyes, and then continued with his internet search on his laptop. Several minutes later the door swung open. "Who's there!?" Dawn's voice called out. Xander smiled a proud smile; he was devoid of his make-up. "I'm armed, I know how to kick ass, and dust vampires!"
"In the living room, Dawnster!" Xander called out, mirth in his voice.
Dawn froze, feeling chills run down her spine. It couldn't be him, but she'd recognized his voice. Several possibilities entered her mind, none of them good, as she stalked forward, taking careful steps until she found him sitting on the couch, casually taking a sip from a mug, and looking at his laptop. He looked up, and greeted, "Hey, Dawn. And before you try to stake me like Willow did, I'm not a vampire, or a demon. I'm resurrected." Xander then stood up and took a step toward, then stayed standing there.
Dawn stayed still fully on guard, thinking it over. Then she very slowly inched her way forward lifting a tentative finger, until she realized that if he wasn't the First, doing this would only help him, and the First couldn't hurt her anyway. Rapidly she took a few steps forward, poked Xander in the chest, causing him to yelp, and then backed up again. Dawn blinked, seeing Xander rub his chest, and she said, "You're not the First."
"Nope, I'm not," Xander answered with an amused smile, and with a caw the crow fluttered into the living room and landed on the counter next to Dawn, then cawed again. Dawn looked at it, fear coursing through her body, a warning voice constantly screaming, 'Demon! Run!' Somehow though something kept her there, something told her things weren't that easy. "Pet him," Xander told her friendly, sitting back down. "Likes it."
Dawn didn't know why, but the crow had a soothing effect, and she tentatively reached for it, and then stroked its head and the feathers on its back. The crow moved its head against her head, almost like a cat. Dawn didn't think a bird like this would do that, but then this didn't seem like any old, normal bird. Dawn stopped her stroking of the bird and turned back to Xander, eyes wide, seeing the mostly black clothes, the coat hanging over a chair across from him. "That's really you, isn't it Xander?" Dawn whispered in awe. Xander nodded. Her sister came back from the dead, now Xander, only Tara and her mother to go and she'd have the set complete. Suddenly something klicked, and Dawn said, "You're the mysterious stranger who saved them last night!"
Xander nodded, saying, "Yes, I wish I was on time for Jennifer, I know you liked her. Please don't tell anyone else I'm back though. Not quite ready yet."
Only moments after Xander finished speaking, Dawn crashed into him, wrapping her arms across his neck and crushing him in a hug. "You're back! You're really back!" Dawn cried out, half in disbelief, half utter joy, and then started planting (chaste) kisses all over Xander's face. "You're back!" she cried out again in joy.
"Yeah, I'm back, Dawnie," Xander answered with a smile, hugging her tightly. "Just not one of the extraordinary people anymore. Blackie here souped me up." The crow cawed in indignation at his newly acquired nickname. "I'm one of the degenerates now."
Dawn pushed herself away from him, and took a good look of him. "Uh, uh," Dawn said, shaking her head. "You might be powered up, but you'll never be a degenerate."
Xander smiled, "Thanks, Dawn. That does resurrected guys good."
"So, this Caleb-dude," Dawn asked, as she laid her head on Xander's chest, and he stroked her hair. "Can you take him?"
Dawn looked up and saw something she didn't think she'd ever see; a feral, predatory smile crept up Xander's face. It didn't frighten her one bit, she only felt a sense of satisfaction that the bastard who had taken away two friends already was going to get his. Xander's answer satisfied her even more, "#Soon#, he'll pay." Xander looked down at her, smiled, and said, "How about we go back to Casa del Summers, and check if Willow is done with her spell already, hmm?"
"What's the spell about?" Dawn asked interested as she got up.
"Memory restoration, the memories without you, they'll need them, both sets," Xander explained shortly, getting up out of the couch. Dawn was a little down, but she nodded in understanding.
*****
The potentials were sitting in the living room, along with Faith, Giles, Robin, Anya, and Andrew. Buffy and Spike entered the place, and Faith asked, characteristically gruff, "So why did you all call us here?"
"Where's Willow, Dawn, and Kennedy?" Buffy asked looking around the gathering.
The potentials looked blankly. Giles answered, "Don't know where Dawn is. Willow and Kennedy have been cooped up in their room quite a lot."
"No matter," Buffy said shrugging it off. "We have new enemy . . ."
"We know about Caleb," Vi answered timidly.
"Yeah," Rona said with resentment, she lifted her broken arm in a sling. "I got to see his handiwork up close and personal remember."
"On top of Caleb," Buffy answered bitterly, her face practically blank. The potentials' eyes widened fearfully, and they muttered among themselves. "Calm down!" Buffy ordered, looking around the circle. "We keep calm and we can beat Caleb and this new guy." Giles lightly averted his head, so did Faith. With a haughty air, Buffy continued, "The man who fired the guns last night, who ordered the retreat, that you all followed without question; he attacked Spike afterwards. Spike got a few good hits in, freeing himself, but he's known him from before his soul, were pals once. The guy is pure evil."
The potentials looked blankly, as Robin got the first hit in, "Exactly how does attacking a Spike equate evil?" Buffy looked blankly at Robin, not understanding the question.
"Exactly, B," Faith said, getting up with a dismissive air, some of her anger spilling over. "From where I'm standing he saved our lives, took out some bad guys, and attacked a vampire. In my book that means he's a good guy. If you expect me to go hunt down a potential ally just because the bleached, wonder corpse over there said so, you can forget about it."
"I thought you of all people should now false pretenses in order to lure people into someone's clutches," Buffy bit back at the former rogue Slayer.
"Yeah, B, I do," Faith told Buffy with a huffy air about herself, she pointed both index fingers at Spike and said, "Now unlike him, the guy actually showed he cared about us. All I get from his major blonde Slayer obsession, and apart from him and you telling me I haven't seen #anything# that shows me he's got a soul. I've faced Angelus, and I know Angel - night and day - haven't seen anything like that in him."
"What is that supposed to mean?!" Spike asked out loud.
Faith flicked her eyes to the door behind Buffy and Spike for a moment as Dawn entered, then returned her gaze to Spike and said, "It means, Sparky, you better not come too close to me without warning, if you don't want to be food for the dust buster." Faith then turned to the stairs and walked toward it, angry, berating herself for letting herself go like that. But circumstances were closing in on her, she didn't really know a way out, and that was grating on her.
She was stopped when a very excited Kennedy came down the stairs. She smiled as she looked at the gathering and said, "Buffy, Faith, Giles, Anya, and Spike follow me. Willow's got something. The rest of you guys wait here." Kennedy then turned around and started walking back up the stairs, apparently expecting everyone to obey her without question. The group mentioned looked at each other for a moment, and then Buffy tried to protest. "No! Come! This is important!" Kennedy cut her off, and as the rest of the group started filing up the stairs, she too followed.
"I'm coming with you," Dawn stated firmly, and she too went up the stairs.
Some moments later the group entered Kennedy and Willow's room and found the witch sitting on the floor of the room, candles burned brightly around her in a distinct pattern, and her eyes were jet back.
"Take a seat," Willow told them calmly.
Not daring to interrupt the super powerful witch who was obviously in deep concentration and channeling an enormous amount of power they carefully sat down. As Dawn sat herself down on the bed, next to a smiling Kennedy, she noticed the crow sitting outside the window, looking in. "Good," Willow stated, and started chanting, "From beyond time and space I call for thee, that which was must return to us, memories altered, memories return, here my call, make the wrong right." Willow went rigid, and a sphere of energy pulsed from her. She felt it hit her own mind first, and as it did its work, she was vaguely aware of it hitting the other people present. Except Kennedy, and Dawn, all went rigid, their eyes flung open as the energy entered their minds. The energy found the real memories that were still there hidden, and brought them to the fore.
A few moments later the energy dissipated, and Willow smiled a wide smile as she went over her real memories. "What the bloody hell!?" Spike asked irritated. "You restored our real memories, exactly how is that going to help us fight the First?"
"Exactly," Buffy started, equally annoyed, but Faith interrupted her.
"You're fake!" Faith accused at Dawn. "The squirt isn't real."
Dawn got up and spit at Faith, "I AM REAL! Just any memories of me before three years ago are fake!"
"Hey, chill, kid. Sorry, I didn't mean it that way," Faith apologized, with her hands up to show her innocense.
"This is so cool!" Anya called out with a wide grin. "Double the orgasm memories." The people and non-person groaned out in frustration. "What? Don't tell you haven't thought the same thing!" Anya defended herself.
"I haven't," Buffy stated, as she got up. "Why are you wasting our time with this, Willow? We've got real important stuff to do."
"I-I . . ." Willow tried, not knowing what to say, her eyes misting up.
Kennedy was slowly getting fed up with Buffy's putting down of her girlfriend and she got up, saying angrily, "Willow rightly thought there might have been something in the unaltered memories to allow us to beat the First. So apparently there's nothing there in that regard . . . big deal, it isn't as if this took that long, nor is it somehow intervening with any of the other research going on - which results by the way are exactly the same: squat!"
Willow looked from her best friend to her girlfriend, and placed a calming hand above Kennedy's knee. "It's OK, Ken. Calm down," Willow requested sadly. Kennedy looked down at Willow, feeling sad for her, as the rest of the people present just looked at Kennedy and Buffy to see if the argument would continue.
Buffy looked at Kennedy, seemingly unaffected, except an harder edge in her eyes, then spun around, saying, "Come on, Spike. This was a waste of time, I've got to find your attacker, seeing as everyone else refuses to kill evil things lately." Spike snorted in agreement, and followed the blonde Slayer out.
*****
"Nothing," Xander whispered bitterly from his position on the branch in the tree. "Buffy is still Spikey wikey wuv you. No difference what so every." The crow flew from its position in the house and went to a place where it could look at Buffy and Spike, and found the first in the latter's arms in her room. Spike was soothing her, and Buffy was complaining that nobody but him understood her, and that the others didn't understand the hardship she had to go through. After a few moments she was calmed down, and she said she was going out to try and find the man she once called her best friend, and who was sitting in a tree watching her. Xander shook her head. "Bitch," he whispered, when the crow cawed. It suddenly flew up and entered an open window.
Xander blinked, and waited, looking through the crow's eyes as it hid on occasion to avoid being seen. Eventually it found a pile of photographs, and the potential studying them left to go get a drink and a short break. The crow flew over to the table, picked up one picture and then flew the same way back. Eventually it landed on Xander's shoulder and let the picture fall in his hands.
Xander looked at the picture, seeing a round imprint in a wooden beam, and he looked closer at it. "Imprint of Caleb's ring," Xander whispered, seeing a few cracks leading from the imprint. *#She# is different, #she# got scared,* Xander remembered the words of the eternal entity talking to him beyond death. "My, my, Caleb, what has got you so riled up you smashed your fist there. What are you afraid of?" Xander mused, and then pulled out a lighter and lit the photograph. He watched it burn, and didn't let go. He looked disinterested as the fire burned his hand, although the pain did cause him to wince. He let the ashes fall and looked at his hand healing rapidly, then decided to follow Buffy.
*****
Dawn stalked out of the room, Faith casually following her. The others slowly filed out of Willow's room as well. Dawn entered her own room upset, one potential who was there doing whatever she was doing, took one look at Dawn's angry face and quickly left the room. Faith entered a moment later. "I'm sorry," she said softly.
"For what?" Dawn spat at her. "For calling me fake?"
"No, for everything," Faith answered subdued. "Even the things I now know I didn't do, 'cause I know if you had been there, I would have done them."
Dawn laughed, and then said, "That's a little late, isn't it? I know you didn't do it, but that doesn't mean I don't remember being stuck in the hall closet, crying as loud as possible, while you were doing who knows what with my mother!" Faith hung her head in shame. "You've been here three days, and all you've done is give me lip; 'Look I'm the Slayer, miss Tough Girl', and #now# you apologize are playing nice? What's the matter? Think we're not going to make it?" Faith's eyes flickered, and she looked up fleetingly. "Oh, god," Dawn said and gave a amused, condescending laugh. "That's exactly it. Xander's dead, you can't apologize to him anymore, so now you're quickly working off the rest of us and hope the balance goes over to the other side. You're apologizing because you think we're all going to die, show the man upstairs your good intentions, so he'll choose to send you up to bliss, instead of down to the fires." Dawn shook her head, and then she got angry and walked over to Faith and started pushing her out of the room, yelling, "Get out! And stay out!" When Faith was pushed out into the hall, Dawn added, "And for your information we're not going to lose."
With a heavy heart, Faith asked, "Got that much confidence in Buffy?"
"No," Dawn answered Faith, as she started slamming the door shut. "Not Buffy."
Faith looked at the door and then stalked away, angry with herself. Several SiTs she met on the way to the garden, quickly stepped aside for fear of becoming the object of that anger. Outside Faith took several deep breaths and then started a heavy work out, imagining an opponent to fight. She had gotten good at that during her prison time. At the moment she hated herself, because Dawn was right, partially. She had apologized to her because of Xander's death, because she had failed to do so on time with him, because she did think they were all going to die . . . And because she thought of herself as a coward. Why didn't she tell everyone what happened when Xander died? After last night's fiasco it seemed the SiTs were no longer so willing to follow the holier-than-thou one everywhere, and Red seemed willing to at least think on her own to feet. But how could she go against Buffy after all she put her through? Plus she was too scared of what would happen to the SiTs if she was wrong, they did boot her out, and she wasn't here anymore to help protect them.
"My, you are still poetry in motion," a voice called, and Faith jerked to face . . . the Mayor.
Faith blinked, several feelings of compassion and daughterly love flooded her being, before she quickly stomped them out, being replaced with repulse and hate. The Mayor was dead, this wasn't him, this was the First, and even if it was, the Mayor was evil. "What the fuck do you want?" Faith stated angrily.
MayorFirst smiled, and took several steps forward, letting his hand slide down next to her cheek, as if he could still touch her. Angrily Fait instinctively tried to swat the arm away, but her own just past through. The Mayor smiled, "Ah, my spitfire, I've missed you."
"You're not him, you just look like him, do you think I don't know? That I'm stupid or something?" Faith asked angrily.
"You're wrong Faith," the Mayor said, but his voice was different, it was that of Xander Harris. Faith took in a sharp breath, her throat choking up, as she saw the Mayor transform in Xander Harris. "I may be the First, but I'm more than that. I actually am the person I change into, I #am# Xander Harris."
"What do you want from me? I'm just muscle, shouldn't you go pester Buffy? Or the great redeemed Spike?" Faith asked, her voice heavy.
XanderFirst gave her his familiar lopsided grin, "And not talk to the #real# Slayer around here? I don't think so. You were having fun weren't you, practicing how to kill."
"How to fight," Faith correcting uncertainly. "And I kill demons."
"Hmm, mm," XanderFirst agreed mockingly. "Right, you actually think you can keep those dark impulses in check, my beautiful? You belong with me, in the darkness. You don't have any friends, none of them care about you, but you know I do." The First changed back into the Mayor, saying, "How could I not?" After that he turned back into Xander, "You didn't even apologize. 'I'm sorry', is that so much to ask, Faith? I know why you didn't apologize, because deep down you feel like you didn't do anything wrong, that they deserved everything they got from you, and more."
"No," Faith whispered, her heart beating hard in her chest. "That's not true."
"Isn't it? Didn't you have the urge to smash your fist into that ungrateful brat's face?" XanderFirst taunted. Faith took a step back, she did have that impulse for a moment, when Dawn accused her of being things she wasn't. "Except it, Faith, the only thing you are good for is good lay, a nice way to lose my virginity. Do you think I'd bother saving you if I didn't think you were that? You haven't actually convinced yourself you were wrong in my motivations when I came to talk to you did you? Why would anyone good want to bring a skank's ass like you into the light? You look so much better draped in darkness, nicely bent over the bed."
"Stop it!" Faith told the First with quivering lips, tears threatening to spill from her eyes.
XanderFirst laughed, and added, "I hate you Faith, don't you get that yet? Do you think that little greeting I gave you was anything but to make sure the potentials didn't see anymore disagreement in the ranks? Dawn always was a blabbermouth. You actually think #I# would forgive you for trying to kill me? Then Angel really got to you with his redemption crap. There will #never# be redemption for someone as sickening as you."
Faith stood nailed to the ground, sobs threatening to poor forth from her, joining the few tears that were already streaming down from her face. "I'm so sorry, Faith," the Mayor's voice sounded. "I'm so sorry. Xander's hatred of you got the better of me. I'm so sorry, I love you, you know that, I should have stopped it sooner. I'll leave you now, my presence won't do you any good, right now. Again I'm so sorry."
Without a sound the First disappeared, and Faith started to sobbing in earnest, unable to keep her emotions bottled up. She took a few steps toward Xander's former grave, and sank down onto her knees. She saw the stick had fallen over and crying she crawled to it, picked it up, and rammed it back in to the ground. She placed her hand on the soil, and whispered, "It can't be true, it can't be. Please, don't hate me, Xander."
A few moments later a voice roused Faith back to some of her senses. "I take it that was the First. Some of the potentials were wondering," Robin said gently. Faith whipped her head around, looking up at him, and she nodded, hastily trying to dry her tears. "He got to you good didn't he? Who was he?"
As she stood up, Faith debated whether she answer the him, finally deciding for it. "A former employer of mine, he was kind of a father figure."
"Some employer," Robin answered her gently.
"And Xander," Faith added, her lip quivering again as she remembered his words.
Robin nodded, telling her, "Well, you're one of the big leagues now. He only comes to them."
"He came to you?" she prompted weakly.
Robin nodded, "As my mother."
"Do you think what it says is true?" Faith asked hopefully.
Robin only thought half about his answer, and replied, "He hasn't told any lies yet."
Tears sprung instantly from Faith's face. She took a step forward and latched onto Robin, crying, shaking her head as she tried to deny to herself the First had told the truth.
*****
Buffy stalked along Sunnydale, seeing people everywhere leaving the town, but not the person she was looking for. A person she wanted to kill for threatening her Spike. That was no surprise, the bird of said person flew undetected above her, and the person was following her at a discrete distance. Ironically the man she was searching for, was also the man on her mind. Buffy was sad, depressed, dejected and more. Xander was dead, she'd led the SiTs in what she knew could be a trap and they paid the price. In her mind though, there had been no other possible action, not even now. It simply wasn't in her capabilities to do so. She was the Slayer, Slayers attacked the demons and killed them. That was the way things were. Leading a large group of people in a battle, considering alternative attack scenarios, strategies, tactics, weapon usages was simply beyond her. Of course as a human being she might have been able to do those things, if she bothered to stop and think about things, considered educating herself in modern weapons, explosives, reading up on wartime strategies. But she was too consumed in her role as Slayer, her own superiority complex stemming from that, to bother with a simple thing called common sense.
Eventually she passed by the highschool and decided to walk into the empty building. She walked through it, until finally reaching her desk, still holding her stuff, even though she was fired from her job.
She looked at the items on it, finding a picture of herself, Willow and Xander in happier times, holding each other and smiling sitting on a patch of grass somewhere. She picked up the picture, and tears started falling from her eyes, Willow wasn't a vibrant smiling girl anymore, Xander was dead, Tara was dead, all because they knew her, all because she was the Slayer, and because she screwed up several times. She let her hands move over the smiling faces of Willow and Xander, and went over her decision again. She knew it was the right decision, it had to be the right decision. How could it not? Spike was the better fighter, they needed the better fighter. She couldn't save her friend only for him to die right along with the rest of the world, that would be selfish. She'd let Angelus kill people because she was selfish once, she wouldn't be selfish again. So Xander had to die, and Spike had to live . . . only there was a nagging little voice in the back of her head, that said, 'Yeah, but Spike is conveniently the guy you're in love with. Look, he went to get a soul for you, you made him what he is today, how could you deny him!? He deserves it! Question is, which choice was the selfish one?'
"Oh, now look," a southern voice sounded, bring Buffy out of her reverie. She looked up to see Caleb standing there. "Things don't go exactly your way, so here come the waterworks. Ain't that just like a woman?"
"Get out of here," Buffy told him enraged. How did Caleb have the guts to come in here, breaching her privacy like that?
"Now, now, little girl. Manners," Caleb told her in a condescending tone. "I do imagine that firebrand tongue of yours has inflamed many a man, weak as they are." Caleb looked around casually for a moment, and continued, "This here's a, uh . . . public school, ain't it? Kinda deserted. Only just, I suppose. Folks work so hard at keepin' the Lord out, and look what happens in return." Buffy backed up slowly, until she found herself against a filing cabinet, as Caleb continued his diatribe, "He abandons you." Buffy reached for a drawer in the cabinet, searching with her hands. "Not that He could do you much good now, anyway . . ." Caleb told her, and turned to see Buffy trying to reach into the cabinet for something. "Ah, ah, ah. Wouldn't do that were I you, swee' pea. Fightin' back didn't do you much good last time, did it? And how is poor, sweet Rona, and Molly? Let's not forget Molly. Let them know they're in my prayers, and any time they're willin', I'm ready to . . ." Caleb pauzed to make a poking gesture, before continuing, " . . . finish the job."
Buffy was fed up with the annoying priest, and snarled at him, "Go near them again, and I will end you."
Caleb overturned Buffy's desk with frightening violence, and walked briskly to Buffy, "Mind your manners. I do believe I did warn you once. You're angry . . . frustrated, scared. I like that in a girl. You really should relax a little. Look at where you are. History's gonna look back at you, at me, at this place, and they're gonna see the glory. Great things are happenin' now, right here. This school, the seal . . . it's all gonna be a part of the great sweepin' tide of change, and you're gonna be a part of it. Now, why would you wanna miss that? More importantly, why would you want to get in its way?"
Buffy scowled, and replied, "I guess I'm just ornery." Then she lashed out and punched Caleb in the face.
Caleb laughed, and said, "Oh, I knew you'd be a wild one . . ." Buffy kicked him, but he grabbed her leg and pushed her down. She kicked his shins, but he picked her up off the ground by her neck. Caleb looks her in her frightened eyes, and said, "I'm gonna take such sweet pleasure in taming you." Then he threw Buffy through the window; she lands across the hall, unconscious. Caleb then walked through the office into the corridor, and stood over her.
Just as he was about to say something useless to the unconscious Buffy before leaving, the sound of doors swinging coupled with a loud voice distracted him. "Hmm, mm, mm, well, look at that," Xander said out loud. Caleb looked at him with a frown. The man all in black, casually, but briskly walked through the corridor toward, closing the distance quickly. He made grand gestures as he continued his speech while he walked, "the great priest standing over the little girl. One super powered man, easily three times the girl's strength, double her weight, much taller, greater reach. What an achievement, how stupendous a battle it must have been, what merit, how . . . utterly pathetic." Xander stopped right in front of the priest, the two on equal height, Xander might just be even somewhat taller.
"Mind your manners, boy," Caleb told him angrily. "Left the girly make up at home I see."
Xander grinned at him without fear, and said, "Yeah, I head a prior social engagement. Didn't want to scare away the other guests. You know how it is, it's why you guys where those pointed hats that obscure more than half your faces, right? You know, the ones with the eye-openings? I always wondered about that fashion statement."
"I don't just kill black folk," Caleb hissed at Xander, his air of superiority still present. "I kill all folk."
"Correction, you kill defenseless girls," Xander replied, their gazes locked on each other. "You don't have the guts to take on someone your own size and strength."
"How do you know that?" Caleb asked in surprise.
"A big black bird told me," Xander answered, with a wide grin. "Don't worry, you'll meet him soon enough."
Caleb snarled, then remembered who he had in front of himself, and calmed down, before saying, "So you actually are going to do this, hm? Stand up to the big, bad priest who can beat up the Slayer five times your strength with just one punch?"
"Why not? I've been facing off against things ten times more powerful for seven years," Xander answered with a smile. He lifted his hands outward, and offered, "I'm still here, they're all dead. I must me doing something right, I'll take my chances." Caleb narrowed his eyes at Xander's lopsided smile, and Xander added, "But then, taking on something equally strong than you, or stronger is an alien concept to you, isn't it, preacher boy? You didn't come here to fight the Slayer on your own terms, nooooo . . . hillbilly went to big bad, untouchable bitch to get himself super powers first. Coward."
"You shouldn't talk to your superiors like that," Caleb told him angry, even as he lashed out a right fist directly across Xander's right cheek. Xander staggered back several steps, before putting his right leg back, and sliding back a few more centimeters before coming to a stop. Caleb's eyes widened in surprise, a punch like that should have put him in at least a coma.
"Watch out, the floor is slippery," Xander answered smiling, feeling his jaw. "Pretty nice right hook you got there." Xander walked back to the Caleb, casually saying, "But you misunderstand, you're not my superior, I'm yours." Caleb watched with wide eyes at the once again standing close Xander. Xander casually added, "Well, I suppose it's my turn to hit you now, hm."
"Why should I let you?" Caleb grinned back, getting his confidence back. This had to be just a fluke, the boy could never handle a full hit from him. He must have slid his hand over Xander or something, instead of actually hitting him.
"Oh, please, don't tell me you don't know?" Xander asked him mockingly, seeing the anger flicker in the priest's eyes. "An eye for an eye, an ear for an ear? It's one of the simple things from the good book, simple enough even simpletons like you understand it." Xander watched Caleb's eyes start to boil with rage. "You know," Xander stated grinning. He indicated himself with both his hands, badly mimicking Caleb's accent, "Good folk . . ." Xander turned his hands to indicate the unconscious Buffy. " . . . bad folk . . ." He repeated the process, saying, " . . . clean folk, dirty folk . . ." Finally Xander gestured at Caleb and finished, " . . . half-witted, cowards folk." Caleb growled, pulling his lips back and baring his teeth, but before he could do anything else Xander's right fist lashed out, directly across the priest's left cheek. Completely unprepared for the power of the blow, Caleb was launched off his feet, landed on his ass, and slid back a short distance. "Well, now," Xander mimicked one of Caleb's catch phrases, "It seems we're even, don't you think?"
Caleb got up, extremely angry, ready to charge Xander, and then thought better of it, remembering the plan he had to carry out. He shook his head, pointed at Xander and told him, "You'll pay for this, soon." Then he turned around and left.
Xander grinned deeply, and called after him. "That's right coward! Go to your little bitch! And tell her I'm coming for her too! Go cry on her shoulder! Oh, wait, you can't! She's incorporeal! What a bummer, huh cry baby!" Xander laughed hard after seeing the priest jerk at every insult thrown at him. He snickered a few more times, and then looked down at Buffy. The crow landed on his shoulder then. It had kept itself out of the way for the physical brawl. It cawed, and then Xander gently bent down, and placed his hand on her head. The telepathic contact established, he instantly got glimpses at Buffy's mind. Xander got up, sneered at Buffy in disgust, and whispered, "You too are worse than I thought. You're going to pay soon, bitch. Soon." Then Xander turned around and walked back to where he came from.
*****
It was dark, and Buffy was back at her house, looking at it. She took a deep breath, she knew what to do now. He walked into the house, and looked around the room. Several potentials were strayed around the living room. Buffy quickly went into the room. A sad Faith saw here enter from the kitchen, seeing Buffy's intense gaze, she went inside the room. Giles followed from behind her. Buffy asked a potential who's name she didn't know, "Where's Kennedy and Vi?"
"I think Vi is with Rona, and Kennedy is keeping Willow company," the girl answered somewhat intimidated.
"Spike!" Buffy called down to the cellar, the vampire grunted a response. "Get up here."
Several moments later, almost the whole group was in the room. Anya and Dawn were also absent, Andrew entered in the last moment. "Where's Dawn, and Anya?" Buffy asked absentmindedly.
"W-with Xander's grave," Andrew answered timidly.
Buffy nodded. That didn't matter they weren't combatants anyway. "Guys, I know nobody liked the vineyard, but we're going back in." Shocked silence reigned over the room. "Look, I know what you're thinking, but I had a visit today in school from Caleb. I - I figured something out. He kept making all this noise about the school."
"Do we need to shut the seal again?" Andrew asked fearfully. "C-cause I can probably cry again w-without bodily harm?"
Buffy shook her head, and explained, "No, that's just it. We've spent all this time worrying about the seal and the hellmouth. Why isn't Caleb guarding them? Why doesn't he have someone there protecting it? Why is he camped out at the vineyard? The bad guys always go where the power is. So if the seal was so important to Caleb and the First, they would be there right now. They're protecting the vineyard or something at the vineyard. I say it's their power, and I say it's time we go in and take it away from them."
"O-or they're just there b-b-because it's easily defendable," Amanda countered weakly, she shrunk back from Buffy when she turned to look at her. "I'm just s-saying, your f-f-flash of insssssight - potentially due to brain t-t-trauma from Caleb's punches - is an awful little to be gambling our lives on."
Buffy looked angrily into Amanda's eyes, who shrunk back, and said, "Trust me, I've done this for seven years, and I'm still around, I'm right about this."
Robin saw Faith opening her mouth to speak, but then closed it, and turned her head away, while she remembered FirstXander's words, 'There will #never# be redemption for someone as sickening as you.' She thought to herself, *I guess this is one last time onto the breach then.*
"We don't even know they're still in the vineyard, and where are the new weapons? Where are the guns, because you know, it would be nice to just shoot Bringers from afar," one potential said bitterly.
Wood hated to mention this now, but he had to. "Not enough time," he said with a hake of his head. "Guns take time to learn, we don't have that time. We just give you a gun and tell you point and shoot, you'll probably end up shooting yourself or some of your own people." Buffy nodded.
"Buffy, you have nothing on this, nothing but empty ideas, you can't just . . ." Giles tried.
"I can! And I will," Buffy commanded him, her eyes looking at him in anger. "You have nothing to say here." Giles shrank back some, Buffy preemptively glared at Robin Wood. She looked around the room, and added, "Does anyone have a better idea? Well?" There was no answer. "Then who is with me?" Buffy asked angrily.
"I am of course," Spike stated, lending his support. Giles and Wood glared at him.
Faith stood up from leaning against the wall, and nodded. "I am," she said softly, the conversation with ghost of Xander Harris once again returning to her. Giles, and Wood looked at her with shocked surprise, and she looked away from them. The potentials looked at each other, and then reluctantly nodded.
"Good, get the weapons, time to mount up," Buffy stated. "Kennedy! Vi!" Buffy called up loudly. "Let's go! Come on! We've got some bad guys to slay!" Buffy went on with her preparations.
Shortly after Kennedy and Vi came down, and they asked, "Where are we going?"
"Back to the vineyard," a potential answered shakily. Kennedy and Vi gave each other a look, they searched for Faith, and found her getting ready, avoiding their looks.
*****
In the vineyard the First in Buffy's guise asked Caleb, "Did you lay the proper groundwork?"
Caleb answered with a big grin, "That I did. Reckon she got the message, even if she doesn't know it yet. So now the big strong slayer goes back to those girls . . . she's just so ready to walk them right into it."
There was a loud crack, and then a Bringer with a horribly twisted neck came tumbling down the stairs. "Yeah," Xander's voice sounded as he calmly walked down the stairs. "Except you're not going to be alive long enough to see her do it." Xander reached the bottom of the stairs and turned to face Caleb, the First and a whole bunch of Bringers, revealing his once-again painted face and he said, "Nice welcome comity up there, not they could say 'Welcome,' or that they can do anything else anymore." Caleb growled. Xander grinned, "Didn't tell'em about me did ya?" Xander looked around, silently counting the amount of Bringers, and added, "Do they come from a conveyer belt or something?"
Then Caleb gave a chuckle, and said, "Now look, we have a trap here for a whole army, and you think you can just walk in here on your own and win? There are too many of us here, even with your guns."
Xander grinned widely, and answered, "There's only one way to find out, isn't there?" Xander pulled two guns from out of his coat and ran forward, pulling the triggers. Each shot was aimed at a different Bringer, when he reached Caleb he ran out. At that point Xander jumped forward, high in the air, two empty clips clanging to the floor. In flight Xander rapidly put two new clips in, went into a complex screw that would make a gymnast jealous, and started firing rapidly. Gunshot after gunshot sounded. When he landed he was no longer firing. He bent through his knees and slid backward across the loose dust covering the floor. He stopped right at the end, got up, pointed the guns right to his left and right, at each side a Bringer stood. Xander fired both guns simultaneously, and the two fell down, only moments after almost all of the bringers dropped to the floor dead. Only five of them were left alive, three were behind the barrels. The guns nozzles were pulled back, showing they were empty. Xander looked around with a smile, and commented at the shocked Caleb, and angry First, "Forty-eight shots, forty-three kills, while doing 10.0 Olympic jump. I'd say that's a good average, landing could have been better though." With the flick of his wrists the clips fell to the floor, and then he put the guns away.
"You should have brought more bullets," Caleb sneered angrily.
Xander grinned, pulled out a shotgun, and with a blast destroyed a small wine barrel. "I did," he said, and put the gun away. "But shooting someone is so impersonal, don't you agree? Every halfwit can pull a trigger, and I want to enjoy killing you." Caleb growled, and Xander walked forward, explaining, "A sword is good, nice and artistic, but not quite as up close as a knife. Strangling someone is almost the way to go, feeling your victim lose his life, seeing it eb away from his eyes, the fear present, aah . . . but there just isn't anything quite like ripping the heart out of his chest with bare hands, to feel the life blood gushing over your fingers, to shower in, to see not only the life but even the blood flowing from his eyes . . . mmh, there just isn't anything like it, don't you agree?" Xander stopped right in front of Caleb, and grinned evilly at him, his make-up made him look even more scary.
"You're crazy," Caleb answered, just the hint of a quiver in his voice.
"Oh, I forgot, you kill the girls first, and then cut them up, too scared to look into their eyes and discover hatred. Ah, well . . ." Xander kept his smile, and looked directly into Caleb's eyes. Oh yes, fear was starting there. He wouldn't just take vengeance for his friends, he would take vengeance on him for every girl he'd ever killed. Xander was going to make Caleb pay by experiencing the exact same thing, have a mad man slowly kill him. Xander was going to instill terror in him before he died. "Until now I've only done it with demons, but I guess there's a first for everything. Tell me, Caleb, is it just as much fun to do with a human being? Perhaps you can give me a few pointers."
Caleb felt fear creeping up on him, and it made him angry, enraged. "Get this mess cleaned up," he ordered the remaining Bringers. "I want to have some room when I kill him." The Bringers scurried about, quickly pulling the corpses aside.
Xander grinned, and then used two fingers of his right hand to beckon Caleb to him. Caleb attacked, Xander blocked the first blow, and got hit in his stomach by the second. He hardly felt it, and landed a punch squarely on Caleb's cheek, which he quickly shrugged off. He got into Xander's guard and rammed several punches on his chest. Xander grabbed one of Caleb's punches and he twisted underneath the arm. He continued his movement, yanking hard, flipping Caleb around in the air. He let go and kicked Caleb straight in the face, while he was still twisting around. Caleb quickly rolled back on his feet, and slammed his feet in Xander's face, staggering him back. Caleb ran forward, and grabbed Xander by his shoulders. He whirled around and threw Xander into one of the big wine tanks. It shattered, sending wood shards everywhere. Xander got up instantly, and threw a massive punch, sending Caleb flying through the air, and crashing to the floor, banging to a halt with his head against a wine tank.
Caleb quickly got up, and said, "I'm fed up with this!" He quickly stalked forward, and blocked one Xander's kicks. He held Xander's legs, and Xander's widened at his predicament. Caleb grinned evilly, grabbing Xander's face with his left hand, holding his thumb in front of Xander's eye right eye. "So you're the guy who sees everything. Let's remedy that," Caleb said evilly, then pressed his thumb through Xander's eye. Xander screamed out. Caleb let go of Xander's leg, and did the same with his other eye using his right hand. Then he grabbed Xander by his shoulders, threw him up, and smashed both his hands in Xander's stomach, launching him into the debris of the tank Xander was thrown into earlier. One sticking out piece of wood with a sharp point, sliced through Xander's chest, and he slumped over.
"Well, now," Caleb stated with a superior grin, placing his hands behind his back. "That wasn't so hard now was it. I'm actually disappointed." He turned and started walked to the back of the vineyard, wondering what to do about the trap. After a few steps, Caleb stopped his movement, eyes widening when he heard chuckling. It was not his, not the First's and the Bringers had their mouths sowed shut. He looked back at Xander, not wanting to believe his ears, when the chuckling turned to a snickering and finally into laughter.
"Actually I have a lot difficulty with dying," Xander stated through his laughter. He stopped his laughing and got up, the wood smoothly sliding out of his chest, his eyes still closed. "And I do hate to disappoint," he added, and walked back to the middle of the vineyard. He turned to face Caleb, and opened his eyes. Caleb took in a sharp breathe when he saw those dark, dark eyes staring back at him, as if he never pressed his thumbs through them. "Scared yet?" Xander asked, an evil grin once again on his face. Then he beckoned Caleb with both his hands, cocked his head, and said, "Round two, padre. Let's go."
With a roar Caleb launched himself at Xander, but the dark-haired supernatural warrior blocked each and every one of them, grinning madly all the way. Suddenly he pushed two of Caleb's hands aside and smashed both his open palms into Caleb's stomach, doubling him over. Caleb gasped looking into Xander's scary face, and he said, "My, my. It seems your little bitch . . ." Xander cocked his head at the observing First. " . . . forgot to give you speed and agility, all that strength and you can't even hit me." Xander send the priest flying with an uppercut, and calmly walked to where Caleb had landed.
Caleb struggled to his feet with a growl and swung his fists. Xander ducked, supported himself with his hands, and kicked out with both feet. The double kick connected, and sent Caleb flying through the air until he crashed into the back wine tank. A water pipe broke behind the tank, and some water flowed from it, the pipe sticking out. Caleb got up, and saw Xander advancing on him, fear was now definitely etched in his face. He attacked wildly, and Xander turned sideways, fighting Caleb with just one hand. Blocking one blow, circling the arm, thus blocking his ability to throw his other hand. Xander gave Caleb a punch in his face, all the while grinning evilly at the priest. He blocked another punch with the back of his hand and wrist, than moved the hand over to Caleb's advancing right fist, and grabbed him by his wrist. "You know," Xander commented smiling bloodthirsty, "whenever I watch a kung fu movie that has this in it, I wanna do it myself. Because it just looks so damn cool."
Caleb roared and gave Xander a mighty headbutt, drawing blood and causing Xander to stagger back. The blood instantly drew back into the wound and closed up, just in time Xander to jump up, swing around, and smash his right foot into Caleb's face, springing open a blood vessel, and sending the priest staggering to the floor. Caleb saw a knife of one of the Bringers Xander had killed lying on the floor. He picked up and wildly attacked Xander. Xander just stretched out his hands, making him look like a scare crow, or Jesus on the cross, and took the knife into his throat. Xander choked up blood, but kept smiling as he grabbed Caleb's wrist and squeezed. And squeezed. Caleb yelled out in pain, and finally let go of the knife. Xander let go, and smiled a bigger smile. Caleb looked up in disbelief, holding his painful wrist, breathing heavy, as she saw the knife moving backward out of Xander's throat of its own accord. The blood withdrew back into Xander's mouth. At the last moment Xander pulled out the knife, and the wound closed smoothly.
Xander studied the knife, and commented, "This isn't a knife." He tossed the knife away, and pulled out a bigger, more dangerous looking knife with a serrated edge on one side. "This is a knife," Xander said, seeing the priest's eyes grow wide with terror. "Oh, yes," Xander whispered, "that's the look I was going for. Do you feel it? Feel the fear." Xander paused for just a moment, and roared, "FEEL THE TERROR!?"
Xander attacked, stabbed the knife in Caleb's abdomen. He locked gazes with Caleb, and whispered, "Is this what you did with those girls, preacher boy? Did you stab them like this? Did you kill them slowly?" Enraged Xander stabbed Caleb again, and then again through his shoulder, more in his abdomen, in his arms and legs, making sure not hit any of the vitals. Xander yelled through it all, "HOW DOES IT FEEL, CALEB? HOW DO YOU LIKE IT? IS IT FUN? THIS IS WHAT THOSE GIRLS FELT WHEN YOU KILLED THEM!!" Xander sliced and diced some more, finally sticking the knife in Caleb's tummy, looking deep into his eyes. "You believe in god yet?" Xander asked sweetly, "Do you think he's put a nice place for you in hell on hold?" Xander sliced the knife up, making a long deep gash bubbling up blood all the way to Caleb's neck. Xander casually put the knife away, and as Caleb staggered back, he said, grinning widely, "Death has a lovely color."
Xander suddenly surged forward, grabbed Caleb by his priestly collar and ran forward with him, impaling the priest, and then himself on the water pipe that had stuck out. Caleb looked with complete terror at the pipe sticking through his tormenters body, but it didn't slow him down any. He looked back up into that terrifying face, in those dark eyes of death, and that horrifying grin. "Well? Understand yet what I am?" Xander asked eerily, his eyes boring into Caleb's as he coughed up blood. He was in such pain, that couldn't keep tears from poring out of his eyes. "I'm god's messenger, I'm the Angel of Death!" Xander hissed, and rammed his hands fingers first into the slash he had made, pushing forward until he touched Caleb's ribs, never once taking his eyes from the priests. Caleb looked back, in shock, pain, horror, and complete terror. "You're wrong! I'm more than that, I'm the thing that brings retribution, I'm the one that sets the wrong things right! I don't serve a measly little god." Xander pulled, tearing open Caleb's chest, his ribs cracked as they broke open. Blood spurt from Caleb's chest, marring Xander's face, more terror flooded Caleb's face as he finally, truly realized he wasn't going to survive this. "I serve a force of nature, of the universe itself. I'm the destroyer of evil! Bringer of justice!" Xander finished tearing open Caleb's chest, the ribs standing out, his heart now beating unprotected. "I am . . ." Xander hissed as he rammed his right hand into the soft tissue, wrapping it around Caleb's heart. He pulled and tore it out, still beating in his hand, he held it out for Caleb to see, as blood gushed from the veins splattering all over Xander. " . . . VENGEANCE INCARNATE!" Xander finished, squashing the heart in his hand, and finally with nothing but horror on his face and his mind, Caleb died, the light dimming in his eyes, and he slumped over.
Xander laughed hard as dropped the heart to the floor, and stepped back, off the pipe. As the wound in his belly closed, he looked back at the terrified Bringers, and whispered, "Anyone else?" The Bringers suddenly scrambled to life, and ran from the vineyard with every last bit of speed they possessed.
Xander grinned, and then walked over to a water faucet with a hose attached in a corner, and proceeded to wash himself free of the blood before it coagulated, and it became impossible to get it off. Done with that he walked back to the middle, and mentally called the crow. He then started searching around, and quickly found a hatch. The crow perched on his shoulder. Still hyped up on the adrenaline rush, Xander was in no mood to figure out how the hatch worked. He pulled out his shotgun, and blew the wood to splinters with one shot. Then he lowered himself down into it, and walked down some steps. Ten bringers were around, most of them busy with every rock hacking tool in the world, trying to get out a shiny red and silver weapon. Xander smiled and casually started firing his shotgun; it didn't take long before the Bringers were all dead or dying.
A few moments later Xander reached a small pillar, or pedestal of rock, with the axe stuck in some black obsidian. Xander grinned, at which point a familiar voice he hadn't heard in years, said, "Well, that just sucks, Xan." Xander whirled around and gasped as he saw Jesse standing in front of him, casually looking around at the dead bringers. "I must admit," the First continued in his guise of Jesse. "Upstairs had a certain flare of drama, and artistic impression, but this."
For a moment Xander hesitated, even his mannerisms were the same. Then he shook his head and commented, "So this is what you wanted Buffy to come get, huh?" Jesse's eyes widened in surprise and annoyance. "What's so special about it?"
Jesse laughed affectionately, and Xander couldn't help but smile back. "I suppose it doesn't really matter if I tell you now, you'll find out sooner or later anyway. Damn, Xan, you always were the blunt one were you?"
"I always thought that was you," Xander returned, turning back around, looking at the pillar of stone. He grabbed the handle and pulled. Then he pulled harder, but it wouldn't budge.
The First smiled, and added, "It's the Slayer's weapon, killed the last true demon on this planet before they got their heinies kicked out. Demon decided that if he was going to die, he was going to take the Slayer with him. She was buried alive with him right here, along with her weapon. It's been here ever since."
"How intriguing," Xander answered with a bored tone, and knelt down. He started to tab the stone gently, testing it.
Jesse crossed his hands over his chest, and walked straight through Xander and the pillar, he turned around and asked, "So, you got an idea about getting out? They certainly didn't."
Xander continued with his tapping all around the pillar. He grinned, moved back to the front, and pulled an explosive from his coat. Kneeling down again, he placed directly in the middle, than pulled some the C4 out of the device, making sure the charge wouldn't be too large.
He took several steps back, pulled out a small black device with a red button, and told the vision of his old friend, "Watch and learn," Xander said, and pressed. The explosive exploded, and the pillar was pulverized. The axe swung gently through the air, and clanged to the floor, still stuck in the obsidian.
Xander's smile faltered. "I'll be damned," Xander muttered with a perturbed pout, and the First laughed out loud.
"Don't feel bad, #I# can't get it out either, and created it, the pillar, you, the whole fucking universe," the First answered him. Xander walked over and tried to pick up the axe, but the obsidian had glued itself to the rocky bottom of the cave. The first laughed again, and said, "I guess you're not taking it anywhere wither."
Suddenly the crow perched on Xander's shoulder fluttered down, and smashed it's beak against the obsidian. It circled the weapon, pecking at the black material. Xander walked over and looked with raised eyebrows. Once the bird had picked at every part, the material suddenly burst open, and crumbled away. Xander reached down and picked up the weapon, as the crow flew back to land on his shoulder. The first looked extremely angry at Xander, while Xander commented, "You couldn't have done that sooner?"
*You seemed to be having fun,* the crow answered him, a sly smile in his mental voice.
Suddenly Xander lashed out with the axe, and sliced it through the JesseFirst. Nothing happened, and the First angrily growled, "You didn't really think that would do anything, did you?"
Xander shrugged, "It's a magical weapon, it was worth a shot. Where's Jennifer's body? It better still be intact, you sick son of a bitch."
Jesse gave a terrifying smile, and answered, "Behind one of the tanks, didn't have time for it yet." As Xander nodded, Jesse walked up to him, and growled, "You think I don't know how to kill you, boy? I kill that bird and you're as mortal as everyone else."
Xander grinned back at him, and said, "True, but unless your Bringers stop peeing themselves and learn how to fly, what are you going to do about it?"
The first suddenly morphed into Xander himself, complete with crow make up, and looked the real Xander straight in the eye, "You won't beat me, boy. I know all your weaknesses, all your insecurities . . ." Xander turned around and walked away, ignoring the First. "Hey! I was talking!" the First shouted out in frustration.
"Blah, blah, blah, boring," Xander returned and went back upstairs.
*****
Buffy, Faith, the potentials, Spike, and Robin sat hunched behind bushes, looking at the vineyard. "Any activity," Robin asked neutrally.
"Nothing," Kennedy answered, worriedly. The building itself caused her to feel fear coursing through her veins. Now that it was so unnaturally silent, it was even more fear inducing.
"Ok," Buffy stated, hefting her sword better. "Let's go."
Everybody stayed put for a moment, before Faith took the initiative, cautiously crouching forward. Suddenly she stopped thinking of something, causing everybody behind her to do the same. She searched on the ground and found a few stones, which she threw in different directions and distances. She stalked forward again.
Buffy caught up with her, and asked softly, "What was that about?"
"No minefield. Probably didn't think it necessary," Faith replied equally soft as the crouched forward.
Gently they and the others moved forward. Halfway from the edge of the clearing to the vineyard, there was suddenly a big explosion, knocking both Buffy and Faith back and off their feet, as well as many others. They sat back up, and looked at the vineyard, nothing left of the outer wall, and what was once its insides, was nothing but fire. The blaze sent a plume of smoke up into the air. "Shit!" Faith called out incredulously, looking at the destruction.
Buffy just looked stunned. Kennedy and Amanda walked up next to them, both standing up straight. "W-well, there goes #that# theory," Amanda commented dryly, as the others slowly gathered around.
"'There's something important there, because they are holed up there,'" Kennedy parroted what Buffy had said to her on the way over, when she had tried to argue, and eventually relented when she realized the decision had been made and most of the rest had accepted the decision. "#They#. #Blew#. #It#. #Up#, Buffy. #Really# important."
Buffy looked even more stunned. "Hold on," Spike drawled out. "We only know somebody blew it up, not who."
"Right," Buffy confirmed, and quickly got up. Faith did the same. "Fan out, search, see if you can find something."
"In pairs," Robin commanded quickly. "One with a short range weapon, and one long range." Buffy looked a little annoyed at Robin but nodded her approval.
"You come up against Caleb come back here, screaming bloody murder," Spike added for good measure, and the potentials fanned out to do just that, circling around the burned ruins.
Buffy stalked forward to the building itself. It didn't take long before one pair of potentials screamed out in terror. Moments later the others arrived on the scene, finding one of the potentials throwing up. There it was: the pipe, still stuck through the remains of Caleb, was standing upright. The squished heart was mounted on top of the pipe, and Caleb's entrails were wrapped around his body, still in his torn priestly robes, and he was missing his head. On the ground, drawn with a stick, and filled with Caleb's blood was the sign of the crow.
"Shit!" Kennedy called out in shock.
Amanda, Vi, and Molly quickly ran to the bushes and joined the one potential in throwing up their dinner.
"Fuck, he really pissed of the wrong guy," Faith commented, while Buffy next to her, was holding a hand in front of her mouth, fighting not to join the other three.
"I haven't seen a bloody artwork like that since one of Peaches' exploits," Spike commented slightly in awe. "Well, ok, I've seen Silence of the Lambs, but you know what I bloody well mean."
Buffy grimaced, and then walked back to the destroyed vineyard, determined to search through it. She wouldn't find anything.