BUFFY
THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
INNER
LIGHT
Part Five
Revelations
Xander
sat in Giles' main room sifting through one of the British Librarians many
ancient tomes. Normally he would have been out on a Friday night, down at the
Bronze enjoying himself with Buffy and Willow. Or at least he would be trying
to. Since they had started College his two friends had been visiting the Bronze
less and less and he was beginning to feel left out of the loop. There were
times when he actually found himself missing the good old days of heavy-duty
vampire slayage back at high school. At least then he'd been useful to the
team, not just some loafer who hung about doing odd jobs all the time.
Speaking
of odd jobs this particular one was becoming mind numbingly tedious and he had
only been doing it for ten minutes. Helping Giles hunt through his old texts
for reference to some obscure vampire Buffy thought might be kicking around
Sunnydale was not exactly the most fun way he could be passing his time. The
more he thought about it though the more he realised that that was an utter
lie. If he wasn't here the chances were he'd have been at home skulking about
in the basement he now lived in. At least he was doing something that would
help Buffy.
"Any
luck over there Xander?" Giles asked from the other side of the room where he
too was sat with a heavy leather bound book open across his knees.
"That
would have to be a negatory." He said then winced. Sometimes he shocked even
himself with his terrible attempts at levity.
"Why
exactly does Buffy want to find this vamp so badly anyway?" Giles looked at him
like he was some kind of retard.
"Buffy
is the Vampire Slayer Xander." He said in his familiar schoolteacher tones.
"One would assume she wants to slay him."
"Since
when has Buffy shown the initiative with the vampire slaying?" Xander replied
cocking an eyebrow. "Other than with Spike, and there she had some pretty damn
good reasons too."
"This
vampire is no ordinary creature of the night." Giles said returning his
attention to the book perched on his lap.
"How
do we know?" said Xander. Giles looked flustered or at least more so than
usual.
"I'm
not sure." He replied finally. Xander sighed and went back to his own dusty
tome. Nothing on this page. He reached out and turned the crinkled papyrus
over. A black bladed sword was prominently displayed. He couldn't read the ancient
dialect but he could understand pictures of which there were many. He raised
his hand slowly, trembling at what he saw there.
"Uh,
G..G…Giles!" he stuttered loudly.
"What
now?" harrumphed the librarian in irritation.
"I
think I've found our vampire." Giles' face lit up.
"Really,"
he placed aside his book and walked across the room. "Let me see." Xander
gladly handed the book over to him and watched stunned as Giles' gaze fell upon
the wrinkled old pages. Slowly his eyes widened at what he beheld.
"Oh
dear." He said.
*****
King
heaved himself clear of the manhole cover in the alleyway. Climbing up onto the
street he slowly let his eyes travel up to the night sky above. Two of the
alignments were in place. Soon everything would be ready. That had felt very
satisfying. To see the confusion on the Slayers face, the fear in the Reavers
eyes and the surprise on his lackeys face. Had the foolish creature really
believed he was leaving that place alive once he was down there. Even if the
Slayer hadn't killed the other King would have dispatched them both and still
blamed her. He couldn't risk having the others know the location of the temple.
Not yet anyway. Who knew what they'd do. Hunger and fear had driven this gang
he now ruled to the edge of madness and as a result all were becoming
increasingly unpredictable. King was beginning to regret killing the leader. At
least that one might have been able to keep them under better control. Still
right now he needed them. The satisfaction of killing the weak willed vermin
would be all the more sweet once he had no more use for there exceedingly
limited talents. As he stared at the stars glittering overhead his hand began
to shake and as usual he had to concentrate to bring it under control.
"Just
a little longer." He growled.
"A
little longer for what?" came a voice from behind him. It was Carlos, one of
the vampires who had been fighting when he had first come to them.
"That
is none of your concern." he hissed. Carlos was troublesome. It would have
taken King no time at all to dispatch the vampire but he held authority over
the others. To kill him would lose him his followers so right now he had no
choice but to allow the upstart to live.
"Where
are the others?" asked Carlos nodding at the manhole cover.
"Dead,"
said King "Thanks to the Slayer."
"You
said there was nothing to worry about from the Slayer!" Said Carlos his voice
rising in fury. "You said you would take care of her!"
"I
can and I will but you must be patient."
"I'm
tired of being patient!" Carlos yelled "I'm tired of skulking in corners and
dark holes! I want to see the Slayers blood, and if you don't kill her, the
others and I will." King stepped forward bringing his own face closer to the
other vampires. As he stared into the wild eyes of the other his face changed.
His brow protruded more, his canines grew longer and his eyes glistened a feral
yellow colour.
"Are
you challenging me?" he growled from the back of his throat. He was amazed at
how much resolve this young vampire had.
"Not
yet." Said Carlos before turning on his heel and beginning to leave. Without
even pausing King reached over and tore the other vampires throat out. Carlos
collapsed to the ground convulsing as the blood he had worked so hard to obtain
flowed out over the ground.
"I
am sorry about this." He said drawing a stake from inside his jacket. "I was
going to let you live but unfortunately you're too much of a liability for me
now." He plunged the wooden spike downward piercing Carlos' heart. As the
younger vampire turned to dust King let out a sad sigh. He would have to
control the others through fear now. It wouldn't be as easy but it would
certainly be more interesting.
*****
Buffy
hurried down the street to Giles' house with Willow in tow. They had a lot to
discuss and not much time to do it in. Marcus, if that was his name, had
disappeared after they'd left the sewers saying he had other things to take
care of but Buffy was damned if she knew what these things were. Taking the
steps down to his house two at a time she darted over and banged hard on the
door. She didn't want to run the risk of him being upstairs and not hear her
knocking. Things were urgent and she really didn't want to have to break the
door off its hinges. She was about to bang on the door again when it swung open
and Giles faced her.
"We
need to talk." They both said at once. Giles looked slightly surprised then
opened the door wider allowing them entrance. Buffy and Willow wasted no time
darting in through the gap. Once inside they turned and waited for Giles to
close and lock the door. Vampires couldn't come in unless invited but Buffy and
the others had learned to be cautious over their years here on the Hellmouth.
Vampires had a tendency to throw you a curve when you were least expecting it.
As Giles turned to them he took a step forward.
"Buffy,
what's wrong?" he said concern etched across his face. "You seem agitated."
From a chair in the corner of the room Xander, who'd been watching intently,
spoke.
"And
the understatement of the year award goes to…"
"Not
now Xander!" Giles snapped with such ferocity Buffy noticed Willow wince.
"I'm
fine," she said with a flippancy she didn't feel, "Just a run in with the
Reaver a.k.a Marcus, a mysterious temple right underneath our fair town, and
our new playmate, the sword Vamp decided to make an appearance as well." The
moment she mentioned their meeting with the vampire Buffy couldn't help but
notice as Giles' face whitened slightly.
"You
found something didn't you?" she said all hint of humour drained from her
voice. Now was really not the time to be making jokes.
"Just
some information on our 'new playmate'." Said Giles shuffling past her and over
to the table.
"I'm
guessing what you found doesn't encourage 'yay' feelings." Said Willow from the
small wooden chair she was now perched on.
"And
you'd be right." Said Giles leaning over the table and retrieving an old book
kept open at roughly the centre. He turned round and handed it to her with a
rustle of ancient manuscript. Buffy couldn't help but notice that he did his
best to avoid looking at it. As she gripped the surprisingly heavy tome in
between her hands she looked down and felt a cold dread move through her at
what she saw. The writing was strange and she didn't recognise it but the
pictures scrawled over the next few pages told her just as much. The first
showed a huge Pyramid rising from a river of black ink on the page that Buffy
assumed was meant to be blood. The second image depicted a man nailed to a
large wooden cross with a crown of thorns adorning his head. Night had fallen
and at the base of the cross stood a second figure. He held a black bladed
sword and was dressed in ragged robes with a hood that covered his face. The
third and final picture showed the man from the temple clutching the same black
sword in one hand and a flaming torch in the other. His head was raised to the
heavens; fangs exposed in a monstrous howl while blood poured down his jaws and
stained his teeth. Behind him a city was burning under the night sky and when
she squinted Buffy could just make out figures running in flames from the
houses.
"Not
the nicest guy on the block." She muttered.
"I'll
say." Agreed Willow who'd been peaking over her shoulder.
"Who
is he Giles?" Said Buffy still staring at the images decorating the pages before
her. "I mean you can read this stuff right?"
"Oh
yes I can read it." Said Giles.
"Then
who is he?"
"The
book simply refers to him as The King."
"Marcus
called him King." Buffy said absently.
"Probably
a nickname." Said Xander
"Yes,
quite." Said Giles taking off his glasses and rubbing at them with his hanky.
"Anyway that book is the only reference to him we've been able to find and as
you can see it doesn't paint a very promising picture."
"Forget
understatement of the year!" said Xander in shock. "You could make it of the
decade!"
"Look
you guys!" snapped Buffy, "I'd love to stand here all night listening as it
takes you two half the night to answer just one simple question but
unfortunately we don't have time. Whatever is going on round here comes to a
peak tomorrow and this guy is majorly involved so could one of you tell me who
he is!"
"That's
just it Buffy." Said Giles. "Even with the book we're not quite sure. He is
definitely old. The book shows that he was present during the crucifixion and
the early references date back as far as the ancient Egyptians."
"Hence
the pyramid." Said Willow. "Obviously."
"So
what about this picture?" said Buffy pointing at the one of the burning city.
"What's this got to do with him?"
"That's
what the book mainly details." Said Giles. "You see Buffy, this King is
something of an authority figure among vampires. He's described as being very
old and exceedingly powerful to such an extent that he has been able to
maintain his human visage unlike other old vampires such as the Master. Being
so old he gathered quite a following of younger vampires who he used to set up
his own underworld kingdom over which he ruled as a dark lord of the night as
it were."
"So
why am I only being attacked by a bunch of scruffy low life vamps and not some
big Knight types like the Three?" She asked.
"I
was just getting to that." Said Giles who sounded irritated at being
interrupted. "According to that book his kingdom existed for two hundred years
as a kind of vampire paradise until it was burned to the ground."
"If
he was the king Arthur of vampires how could anyone beat him?" asked Willow.
"Was it a Slayer who did it?" Giles shook his head.
"It
was him. He burned it down."
"Okay
back up a little here Giles." Buffy said feeling very confused. "You did just
say he right? As in King? King burned down his own kingdom? Why?"
"He
is apparently a great believer in the purity and greatness of the vampire
spirit. He saw that his subjects had become decadent and corrupt, that they had
become separated from the very instincts a vampire must rely upon in order to
survive so as punishment he took a torch to the city and burned it to the
ground. Anyone who stood in his way was brutally murdered."
"So
who exactly does this guy bat for?" asked Xander. "I mean, he kills his own
kind at the drop of a hat. That doesn't suggest Master type to me." Giles
turned to Xander.
"I
wouldn't think that if I were you. Just because he will readily kill vampires
doesn't mean he can be seen as a 'good' vampire. He is just like any other,
ruthless and evil." Buffy rolled her eyes. Giles always knew the wrong thing to
say at the wrong time. Still at least he was predictable unlike so many other
things in her life.
"Is
there any good news you'd care to share?" she asked.
"There
is one silver lining, yes." Said Giles.
"Which
is?"
"In
all his life as a vampire I don't think he's ever killed a Slayer. I don't
think he's even fought one. It's possible that if he comes into combat with you
he'll underestimate your abilities. That may at least give you some advantage."
"At
last things are looking up." Xander said his voice filled with sarcasm.
*****
Marcus
crept slowly towards the ruined building site. A gust of wind sent strewn
pieces of paper fluttering up through the air in a graceful ballet. The wind
would have made anyone else shiver. Not him though. He continued creeping
forward listening to the muffled pleas coming from inside the building. A dull
glow from inside cast flickering shadows on the wall as he approached showing a
whirling view of what was taking place inside those half finished walls.
Finally he reached the hard concrete and began to edge along it. As he neared a
gap in the wall he peered round it. At least twelve vampires were gathered in a
circle around two young girls fresh from the Bronze that night. Each one had a
gag roughly tied around their jaw so as to stop them screaming too loudly.
Tears streamed down their faces as vampires laughed and jeered at them. Then
King appeared. He pushed his way into the centre of the vamps along with the
two women.
"Did
no one ever teach you scum that it's bad manners to play with your food?"
without pause he whirled around his face morphing as he went and dragged one of
the girls closer to him, biting through the skin of her neck like it was
nothing more than paper. As he held her with one arm his other snaked into her
long auburn hair and yanked her head back with such force that her neck snapped
with a sickening crunch. He drank for another minute or so before dropping her
to the floor. Most of the vampires pounced on the dead girl like jackals now
that their master had finished feeding. Marcus watched as he turned to the
second girl exposing blood stained fangs. He couldn't let him do this. Too many
had already died because of this one.
"King!"
he roared stepping out from behind the wall. "If you touch her I will kill
you!" Over a dozen pairs of blazing yellow orbs fixed their attention on him.
The moment he appeared three of the creatures began to move toward him licking
their lips hungrily.
"Wait!"
King yelled at them. "Don't even try. You won't even hurt this one. Even when
we think you're finally dead you just keep coming back to haunt us don't you
Reaver." The other vampires backed away at that. Marcus could guess why. He hadn't
yet met a vampire who hadn't heard tales of the Reaver. Many were incredibly
over exaggerated of course, but most vampires were so arrogant they had to
virtually deify any creature that could defeat them.
"Give
me the girl King." He said flatly. King glanced at the young girl behind him.
"Take
her if it means that much to you." He said as if he didn't have a care in the
world. "After all what's a meal between friends."
"You
know very well I do not have your appetites." King smiled as he reached over
and snatched the gag from her mouth.
"You
ought to try it some time. You'd be surprised at how refreshing it is." He
turned to the girl, "Run home little one," he growled. "Before my hunger
reasserts itself."
"Enjoy
your food while you can King." Marcus shot back. He couldn't help himself and
glanced around the motley crew of vampires watching him. They seemed transfixed
by the way he and their master were talking to one another.
"After
tomorrow night Marcus, I will have all the time in world to satisfy my thirst."
King snarled.
"I
wouldn't count on it." Marcus grinned. "The Slayer and I are more than a match
for you."
"So
she is aiding you." King hissed darkly. "You shouldn't have brought her into
this Marcus. The Slayer has no business in this affair. It is strictly between
you and I."
"Getting
worried King." Jeered Marcus. King scowled at him
"Worry
for your own soul Reaver," he said, "and prey for your friend the Slayers.
She'll need it." He turned to the other vampires.
"Follow
me." He growled. "We have much to do before tomorrow night." Marcus watched
them go.
"So
do I." He whispered.