TITLE:
THE PRIZE 8
AUTHOR:
STEPHEN HOWE
E-MAIL:
sh01@bigpond.com.au
FEEDBACK:
Sure.
DISTRIBUTION:
Ask and ye shall receive!
DISCLAIMER:
All characters belong to Joss! He created everything! Rated R for violence and
adult themes. Set in season 6.B/X pairing. Giles is Buffy's watcher who now
works for the Council once more. Anya gave her life to save Buffy in the fight
against Glory. Dawn is still here and Willow is with Tara. THE FORREST. Buffy
watches the sun go down as they loose the trail they had been following. Giles
kneels and tries to find another print but." It's as if it just
vanished?" Buffy looks around. " Giles from the thing you described
it should be heavier than a tank and we've lost its trail?" John
tells them." The Shamash village is somewhere around here maybe there's
someone there that could help us?" Giles pushes his glasses back up the
bridge of his nose. " If what you say is correct surely they would be the
last people to talk to?" Buffy looks at Giles and he can see the anger
building behind her eyes. " I don't care what you do! I say let this thing
have the lot of them.. But the Sheriff is mine!" Giles tries to calm her down. " I know you're angry Buffy
but we can't just let this creature run rampant! What if innocent..." She
cut him off with a glance and his soul quaked at the venom he saw in her
words." These 'people' used and abused other humans just because they had
the power to do so! Then when someone stepped in and tried to stop them
they..." She almost lost control and began to cry again but her resolve
stood fast." They murdered him and hid the evidence in the ground like the dogs
they are!" The sound of hands clapping drew their
attention towards a man standing in the shade of some trees. " Very nice
Slayer! I really got into the whole' angel of vengeance ' thing you've got
going there but what about Xander? Do you think he would want you to turn into
another Faith? And what of this thing when it's finished snacking on the town
do you think it will stop there?" She glares at him." The
Sheriff and his men must pay!" Spike flicks his cigarette away then moves
towards the group. " Oh don't you worry pet I have plans for the good
Sheriff! Plans that would make Angelus puke!" He took
the shotgun from Buffy and gripped her shoulder. " Don't worry Slayer you
will find Willow, stop this Godzilla Wanna be and I'll take care of Sheriff Vince
and then we can take Xander's body back to SunnyHell. Then maybe I can take
over from where droopy left off? " " Spike, Willow's
dead! The creature tore her up with the other two deputies!" He looked at her." Where did you get
this? Those two heroes were trying to rape her but I couldn't break my shade to
help. Then the creature from the slack lagoon came rolling in and played mix
and match with their bodies, but it picked Red up like a plaything and carried
her off." He looked from Buffy to Giles. " I thought you knew?" Giles
looks down the track the creature had vanished on. " Why would it rip
those two apart yet let Willow live?" Spike shrugs then places the barrel
across his shoulder. " Give up watcher, maybe he fancies redheads? Or
maybe he wanted a snack when it wakes up." Giles turns to reply but before he can an arrow pins
Spike to a tree." Jeez! What is it with these people and shooting arrows
into me?" " Nobody move or the Billy
Idol clone gets a one way ticket to Dust city!" Spike yells into the
darkening forest. " Hey! I'll have you know he copied me.. Smart
ass!" SHAMASH VILLAGE. Willow is
talking to Pony about the history of her people." We arrived with the
people called First ones to use words for power. They were the descendants of
the Annassasi." Willow looks quizzically at her. " We were taught
they disappeared from their homes in New Mexico hundreds of years before white
invasion." Pony smiles. " Ah yes
white mans history of the red man. If it weren't so pandering I'd scream!
" Pony watches as Grey Owl tells Willow. " The first tribes to talk
of the Annassasi told the white man they came from the stars and returned to
them many centuries before the white man even dreamt of new lands to conquer.
The Annassasi left behind a legacy that became their legend and a relic that
became our millstone." The wizened old man raised his arms and began his
tale. " The last of those that were there to see the Annassasi leave were
given a stone that came from their home. As soon as the first of the Shamash
people touched the stone they were instantly fused with the stone. This is
where we received our gift, and our curse." Pony asks
Willow. " Alexander, was he descended from any of the first
nations?" Willow thought for a
minute then shrugged. " I really can't say Pony, he never talked about his
family." She blushed as she recalled." I know they weren't very good
parents... He did say once about a dream he had when the first... I mean he had
a dream about his father telling him he was the last of his line and the line
ends with him." Pony
blanches and Grey Owl clasps her knee." You were not to know little
one." Grey Owl turns to Willow. " Your young friend appears to have been the last in a long line of
Shaman vessels." He nods." It is said that at one time there were a
tribe of Annassasi decedents living, hidden, amongst the white eyes. They took
on their form and even hid their offspring so well even they didn't know what
they were till they came of age." "
Just what is a vessel? The people we work for told a friend that they suspected
Xander was something more than we could imagine." Willow felt the track of
a tear as it slid down her cheek at the memory of her childhood friend. Grey
Owl turned to Pony and nodded. Pony stood up and held out her hand. " Come there is
something we should show you." She bowed to Grey Owl then guided Willow
down the hallway and up to a room that emitted a green glow through the gaps in
the door. Pony stopped and thought how to give her thoughts life." Know
that we did not have any idea this would happen. We only tried to help one that
gave his all for our people and paid the ultimate price. Had we known we would
have told him not to touch the crystal." Pony opened the door and Willow's
scream cut through the peaceful night. END
OF 8
