We only chose to borrow these characters for a bit to do what we enjoy doing. All that we own is our lovely plot! No
copyright infrigment is intended in any way shape or form.
With that out of the way...
Title: Imitor Vita Pro Amor (Imitating Life For Love)
Authors: Peroxide Pest and Nocturne Wytche, AKA Celeste and Debbie
Spoilers: All Seasons
Dedications: Well, I'd like to say thanks to all those wonderful S/B writers out there that have inspired me and my sister to come
outta our shells and see what y'all think of our lil fics. We'd probably like to thank each other for putting up with each other and
the sort, and of course for being so good at writing together, you can
barely tell where one of us begins and one ends. Also, to
our sister, Keren, who still loves Angel, we forgive you :P Lea,
thanks for all the help and support, blessed be sister.
Summary: A few unsuspected visitors come back to good ol' SunnyD and
cause some more havoc in our favorite slayer's life.
She must also decide where her feelings for Spike lay. A run
in with a demon changes things for Spike. S/B
Rated: R just to be safe
Note: songs come into a lot of play in the next few chapters, just to
let you all know. Sorry if it becomes a nuisance, but hey
its the music of our character's hearts :P Or something to that
affect... Plus, it leads to plenty of s/b romantic tension, which
we
all love! Also, no copyright infringement intended on these beautiful
songs, that are the backgrounds to the soul of this story :)
P.S.: We've also come to notice that Spike purring...is a GREAT thing
:P *EG*
P.S.S Due to 2 mentions we've fixed the format so its easier
for you all to read and enjoy, and we're such sticklers to please
our fans; its fixed :P enjoy!
Without further blabbings:
Imitor Vita Pro Amor
Part 20
The sun was taking its sweet time coming down, and the others had call with no reports of the minion.
Buffy paced the back room, fear tugging on her heart. She looked at the papers Cordy had gathered and wondered what place to check out first. It only seemed logical an electric demon would be based at some type of supply base, or near to.
Someone shuffled into the back room, quietly.
She turned to the footsteps to see a brooding vampire, ironically, not the usual one, who was completely avoiding eye contact with her. *Brooding must run in the family*... she thought. All she could think of was Dawn right now, but hearing and feeling Spike's frustration, she ached to make things okay between the two of them.
Spike pushed his anger aside for a moment, trying to think how much the Slayer must be worried bout the Bit. Hell, he himself was on the verge of another demon massacre, reminiscent of the one he'd gone on shortly after Buffy's funeral. He shoved his hands into his jean pockets, looking at the floor instead of at Buffy, unsure what to say or if he should say anything at all. He wanted to hear what the Slayer had to say about before, with the Poof, but his main concern was Dawn right now. He wondered what profound revelation had occurred hours before in this very room that could bring back the Slayer and her angelic vampire...
Buffy sighed, knowing he'd stay silent forever if she didn't speak first. "Any news?"
"No," he replied shortly.
She made as if to say something to him, but thought better of it and lowered her gaze, beginning to pace again. Her heart hammered with every footstep and turn. She stole a quick glance at Spike and her heart leapt a bit, seeing the look of concern in his eyes as he watched her pace. She finally stopped and faced him, arms going around herself, as if shielding herself from his scrutiny. "Spike, I know what you must be thinking right now..."
"I'm thinkin' we should be doing something for the Bit right now and instead we're all pacing like caged lions," Spike responded nonchalantly, shrugging. Hoping, that maybe if he concentrated on what was really important, it would make him stop hurting so they could avoid talking about it all together. He was brooding and miserable enough as it was.
"I mean about me and Angel," Buffy responded, as always, tenaciously holding firm to her resolve.
"I don't care what the two of you do," Spike shrugged his shoulders again, with obvious envy in his voice.
"Let's not play these games, please," Buffy stepped closer to him. "Spike, stop acting like a jealous boyfriend."
"What?!" his eyes widened, and they looked somewhere between "caught red handed" indignant, and enraged. "I am NOT bloody jealous. Especially of the Grand Poo-ba."
"So then why are you giving me the cold shoulder now?" Buffy challenged.
"You 'ave no idea what you're talking bout luv," Spike denied, gaze fixated on the covered curtain behind him. "This is the way I always am."
Buffy gripped his arm, pleading him to look at her. "Spike, please...listen to me."
"Even if I were jealous, which I'm not, we shouldn't be talking 'bout this," Spike responded, using his reasonable voice even as he avoided her eyes. If he made contact, he'd break down. "Dawn's in danger."
"I know she is, and we're doing all we can, but Spike... I can't stand this silence between us!" Buffy gripped his arm harder. Her other hand reached out under his chin and she gently turned him to face her. "Look at me, please."
"I don't wanna hear your sympathies Slayer, 'm not hurt bout you and the poof. Should've known it would come to it, 'sides, he's got what 'll never have luv. A soul," Spike tried to shake from her grasp. This time, she let him loose.
"You don't need a soul Spike. I like you just the way you are," she said softly, her stomach filling with butterflies.
He looked purely skeptical at her admonition. She knew that look. It was the look that said he didn't want, nor would ever need, her pity.
Nervous wasn't strong enough a word to describe what she was feeling right now. That, added with his blatant his skepticism of her word, made her almost faint. But seeing that he was still listening to her, in spite of his doubtfulness, though not looking at her, she drove herself forward. She had come this far, right? Why not go all the way? Angel had been right.
"It's not Angel I want to be with Spike..."
Spike's eyes finally shot up to her face locking with hers. He felt stunned. "What?"
"I don't love Angel anymore, not like I used to," Buffy revealed. Her lips felt dry and she ran her tongue over them, searching for words. "It was a lifetime ago."
Spike felt his body go warm at her motion. "What are you saying, Slayer?"
Buffy shook nervously. Why was this so scary? So hard? She leaned in closer to him, the hand gripping his chin, now stroking his cheek. She closed her eyes, leaning her forehead against his, and the entire world seemed to fade away. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Spike recalled something about a bubble…
"Spike, I want..."
"BUFFFYYY!!!!!" Willow's voice screeched, shattering the moment. Both heads jerked towards the door.
Buffy shot out of Spike's arms in an instant, charging into the other room at the distress evident in her best friend's voice.
Spike stayed rooted to his spot for a moment, physically shaking in his knees. He took a moment to compose himself, then charged into the room after her. There was business at hand, after all.
"What?!" Buffy searched the room, looking for the immediate danger. "What is it Will?!"
"It's Dawn..." Willow's eyes were filled with worry, her hand holding the receiver of the phone. "Xander just called..."
"What happened?!" Buffy's heart stopped.
"There was...a...an...incident at the school. Dawn's
missing!!" Willow cried.
Vidartha leaned against its self made throne of smoothly carved stone, listening to the hum of generators above it, buzzing with power that humans had learned to harness over time. His kind had been the first to do so, mold lightning and earth and rock to their needs when they arose. It realized that with the containment of such power so nearby, it made life easier for him, as he did not have to wait for the next electrical storm to conjure or re-power of its servants. Closing its thickly lidded eyes, the creature listened to the flitting of life essence within, consumed from a human the day before. It was a delightful feeling, but not quite enough. At the rate it was going, the demon would have to consume one hundred creatures before it would be restored and it could resume its rest. It hated the world, the loud, squabbling creatures that ruled it and the rumbling, disgusting ones that growled below it. It wished to return to its resting place once again, after gaining enough power to survive more centuries of undisturbed rest. However, the creatures of today seemed remarkably weaker, less powerful, than those the centuries before. Perhaps it was with the comforts of harnessing the power of such forces like electricity that made their lives more comfortable. The less hardship endured, the weaker they seemed to grow, until each life force seemed a shadow of its potential potency. Vidartha would need so many more today than he would have in the time of the Romans or the Greeks. There had been strong souls. The creature recalled somewhere in the recesses of its memory needing only 20 Greek soldiers those centuries ago, to survive until now. Perhaps it had gone too long without sufficient food, that put it in its current, weakened state. If it had woken perhaps, last century, it would have no need of its minion to gather food, as it would have been possible to do so itself. It hated being reliant on something that was not truly alive, nor truly dead. But, it was necessary.
Sighing, the demon settled into its self-made seat and
waited for its minion to return. By nightfall, it would have gained and
stored sufficient energy from its last meal, and could use the precious
little extra it had stored to perform the ritual to vacuum the life from
its next victim. Thus the cycle would continue, until it had stored enough
excess, and could sleep again.
Buffy almost staggered backwards at her best friend's news. "What?"
"They took her," Willow repeated, looking wide eyed and a little frightened. "In broad daylight! They're not supposed to do that!"
"What, because it says so in the demon villain's guide to dos and don'ts?" Gunn drawled. It earned him a fierce look of reproach from both Angel and Giles, and the young street fighter backed off slightly. "Sorry."
"Do we have any idea where they might have taken her?" Buffy asked, trying to keep her voice calm. Dawn wasn't dead yet. She had to believe that, in any case.
"Not yet…" Tara started.
"But we can do a spell," Willow finished for her girlfriend.
"We can um… we can…"
"S-Set it to find D-Dawn's energy l-level…"
"And it'll show us where she is…"
"W-Well, not EXACTLY, w-where she is, but um…"
"Nearby."
Buffy looked back between the two witches. "All right. Get started on it. Um…Gunn, Cordy, Fred… see if you guys can't find anything on the Internet. Look for power surges, electricity failures, anything."
"Right."
"Okay."
"Giles, Wesley… I need you to find more about this guy… see if you can't find out how he eats….takes…does whatever he does to his victims, and if there's any way to reverse it, or stop it once it's started. And Giles, call Anya and Xander, tell them to keep looking for Dawn, there's a chance that maybe she just ditched… and if she did, she is sooo dead…"
"What about us?" Angel asked, having for the first time, seen Buffy in control. The confident woman in charge here was definitely different from the naïve, sometimes-uncertain teenager he had once known. Inwardly, his smile was bitter. Things had changed. The girl he had known once upon a time had been the love of his life. Perhaps the one before him now, was a completely different entity. He had to accept it.
"Angel, Spike, come with me to the back. We're getting weapons ready." Turning around, she marched back into the training room, desperately in need to busy her hands.
Spike and Angel regarded each other for a moment, both wary at the prospect of having to be in the same room together. The younger vampire clenched his jaw for a moment and almost abruptly, stopped glaring at his grandsire. The two formed a silent agreement then and there that now was not the time for any sniping; no matter how much they disliked each other. They owed it to Buffy, and to Dawn to concentrate on the task at hand. Spike whirled first, following after Buffy, and Angel followed him.
Gunn looked around to all the others remaining in the room. "Is it really a good idea to let those three be alone together?"
Cordy snorted as she revved up the computer near the office. "YOU want to tell Buffy she can't?"
The Slayer grabbed a large; double sided axe and threw
it in Spike's direction. The vampire plucked the proffered weapon from
the air without missing a beat and grabbed a stake and a sword, which he
tossed back to Angel. The elder vampire caught the blade and whirled it
in the air around him twice, to gauge the balance of the weapon. The metal
sliced through the air with a whistle inaudible to the human ear, its speed
balanced with power in a light, but deadly frame. It was a good sword.
Buffy pulled her own sword from the rack and handed it to Spike, their
hands brushing slightly, with fingers curling slightly towards one another
in a lingering touch just long enough to make a point to Angel though not
long enough to be noticed by either of the participants. He spun the sword
again and wondered if he hadn't really lost this girl a lifetime ago.
Spike studied Buffy carefully, but let her take charge of the dilemma, giving her space. She had always been her own strength, and he knew she appreciated the others' faith in it. He believed in her ability. She still however, looked troubled. "Bit'll be all right, pet." He said it quietly, while loading a crossbow with an iron tipped bolt. He used a light, confident tone, in part to quell her anxiety without making her feel awkward about it.
She paused in what she was doing for a second, as if processing his words, before resuming. "Yeah. She will be."
"We'll get to her in time."
"Yeah, we will."
Angel didn't say anything, and for once, Spike was glad his grand-da decided to refrain from being stupid. He supposed even the densest things could be subdued by a common fear.
Buffy stopped and looked at Spike after a moment's passing, allowing a small smile when she realized what he was doing. "Thank you."
"For what, pet?" He looked completely innocent, not a small feat for a vampire who had not only seen, but committed horrendous wrongs in his day.
"For seeing right through me and not saying anything about it," she admitted, settling a stake into the waistband of her pants.
He returned her smile a little awkwardly. "We will get her back."
"I know. But I'm still scared."
"I'd be worried if you weren't, luv."
"Do you think she'll forgive me?"
"For what?"
"For not being able to protect her, again."
"Now what the bloody hell does that mean?"
"I let another psycho path get a hold of her, Spike."
The vampire snorted. "Oh, I'm so sure it was by choice."
"I'm supposed to protect her."
"And you have been. And you will again. Now buck up, Buffy. We'll have none of that slowing us down. I need your head in the game, baby." He paused, his voice catching a little as he realized what he'd called her. Hopefully, she hadn't noticed. "We um… we concentrate on Dawn now, and we forget playin' what if, all right? It's already a bloody dangerous game as it is, an' we need to be in it all the way, pet."
She looked down at the floor, properly chastised, with a small, frustrated smile on her face. "We'll get her back, and she'll be okay."
"That she will, luv."
Angel faded back a ways into the shadows on the fringes
of the room when he realized that to the other two within in, he no longer
existed. Instead he loaded fresh stakes into the spring loads strapped
to either of his arms and listened painfully, if not voluntarily, to the
simple conversation playing out before him that at the same time, held
so many layers it was almost impossible to discern the true meaning of
any of the words spoken unless you were one of the two involved. He put
a knife in the inside of his duster while he watched from the outside of
the bubble.
Dawn's eyes shot open and her first reaction was to move. She made as if to move her rather uncomfortably positioned body, her mind fuzzy, and not quite able to register whether or not she was standing or sitting. Her hands moved slightly and she was alerted to a jingling sound. She moved them a bit more and felt rings encircling her wrists, and the back of her hand hit a wall. Great. She was chained to a wall. Her toes scrapped lightly along the cement floor, barely touching the ground. Heart pounding heavily, she gasped slightly, coming fully awake.
The sweetness of oblivion gone, she went instantly from groggy to scared out of her mind and she tugged futilely, trying to break the chains that bound her. When her efforts were rewarded with absolutely nothing she began to panic, her feet scrambling under her in an attempt to gain some solid footing.
"Ahh, don't move child... you make so much noise…" a voice
hissed from the darkness.
Dawn's fear doubled and she froze. She wasn't alone. Her
eyes widened and she scanned the dark, cement room. Squinting in
the darkness, she tried to see who her abductor was. "Who are you?!"
"That is of no concern to you. Soon you will not be alive," the voice hissed, closer than before.
"T-t-that's what you think. My sister's the Slayer, and, and she won't be very happy about this, and… lemme tell you... she's killed a hell god, so you'll be a piece of cake!" Dawn responded, not sounding as sure as she would have hoped.
"Silence!!!" it warned in annoyance, the room echoing with the sudden rise in volume.
Dawn felt choked by the heavy feeling of fear in the air. She gasped, willing her eyes to search harder. "What are you? What do you want with me?!"
"I am the lifestealer. And I want your power, sweet one," it revealed. "I can feel your strength, from here. It radiates through the whole room, courses through your blood, singing. There is more power in you than in the entire, pathetic place of those who dwell above..."
Dawn could almost feel the smug smile on the face of her captor. She pulled at her chains, trying to break free. She had to get outta here.
"You'll never break those, little girl. The power within you is pure energy but on the outside, you are still a child..." it trailed off for a second, making an odd sighing sound. "I've never felt such power before. With your power, I will be invincible..."
"Who are YOU!?!" Dawn cried, trying desperately.
Buzz's and claps of electricity suddenly filled the room, and the question was almost lost.
Dawn felt her hairs stand on end. That was the same sound she heard before she was attacked at school.
The room was suddenly brighter, and the electric demon appeared, igniting the chamber with its illuminating light. It zapped and buzzed colors of blue, yellow and white. The gray skin underneath was scaly and wrinkled.
Dawn's eyes grew even wider and they adjusted to the light and she looked on in disgust. It was so ugly and disfigured.
"Now, now dear. Don't look so disgusted. "You'll hurt Fortis' feelings..." that familiar voice hissed in her ear. "After all, I'm sure you'll see much worse soon..."
Dawn turned her head away from the demon called Fortis and she screamed in pure horror at the demon near her side. Her feet backpedaled on the wall as she scurried away from it, as far as the chains would allow her.
Vidartha laughed wickedly, its snake-like tongue darting out his fangs. "I am Vidartha, child and soon your power will be mine."
Dawn fought the urge to either hurl or pass out. The repugnant looking demon was over 7 feet tall, with 4 arms, and 2 tentacle-like extensions. Its long, scaled body was shades of dark purple and yellow-green, its tentacles pink and yellow. It had 4 horns protruding rudely from his head, all sharp and black. His head had the shape of a crocodile's, with long, overgrown fangs and a snake-like tongue hanging limply from its mouth. He was by far the most loathsome looking creature she'd ever seen.
To her shock, a long spiked tail popped out from behind too. It whipped back and forth much like a puppies tale in its excitement. He laughed wickedly, only too pleased by Dawn's reaction. His tongue slithered out, coming to a stop near Dawn's cheek.
She pulled her head to the side sharply, avoiding
contact as she yelped. She squirmed against the wall, praying the
chains would break. Not that she could get very far with Vidartha
and Fortis here. What did this thing want her power for? And
what power was it exactly, that she had? How did they know she was
The Key? She thought only Glory would want The Key. Confusion
only made her fears deepen and she felt tears begin to roll down her cheek.
She squeezed her eyes shut tightly, her heart screaming out for Spike and
Buffy.
The sun was shortly gone, replaced by the rising moon and the chirrups of crickets in the air when the gang was on the move. Willow and Tara led the pack, a glowing orb floating above the palm of Willow's hand, illuminating the their path. The orb was connected to Dawn's aura, and would lead them toward her indefinite location.
Cordelia, Fred and Gunn had come up with 4 closed down energy supplies in Sunnydale and 25 power outages over the past week. They were chasing down the 2 furthest power plants from town to be safe.
Xander and Anya continued their search for Dawn in town. They'd checked her friends, the Bronze, home, Spike's crypt; everywhere Dawn had been renowned for running away to. Nothing came up, so they were headed for another power supplier on the other side of the city limits.
Giles and Wesley hadn't been able to find much more on Vidartha, than they had already known. He sucked his victim's dry of all life energy, and they vanished. Giles mentioned something about the transfer requiring a connection to Dawn, most likely by a simple touch.
The watcher had offered to join Buffy, Spike, Angel, Willow and Tara, but Buffy declined his and Wesley's help, afraid they'd be hurt. Instead, she pleaded for him to continue searching for Dawn. Fred had stayed behind with them, searching as well. Though there wasn't much any of them could do.
"Anything yet?" Buffy bit her lip with worry, gazing at Willow.
"I can feel her getting closer, but there's so much energy in the area... It's sorta hard to concentrate..." Will's eyed never left the orb in her hand as she spoke. Her other hand was enclosed in Tara's, drawing strength from her to keep the spell up.
Buffy lengthened her stride, passing Willow. They
were close, that was all that mattered. Once they neared a power
supply, she'd know exactly where Dawn would be.
"Slow down Slayer," Spike's thick accent commanded, as he jogged
to draw up alongside her. "You're makin' it harder on Red by rushing
'er..."
"I can't waste anymore time, Spike, she's close, I feel her..." Buffy continued her pace. Her heart pounded with terror. "God help anyone who hurts Dawn... I'll rip them apart with my bare hands!"
Spike walked beside her, keeping a silent, concerned vigil. His eyes kept slipping over at her, though he tried very hard not to stare. He knew he shouldn't think such thoughts at this time, but he couldn't help but notice how beautiful she was when she was determined and angry and in total Slayer mode. She was like a goddess: golden hair floating with her long, confident steps, her hands clutching her crossbow, knuckles white with her grip, her lips pursed in anger, her normally timid, tawny eyes alight with fire, and dear god her body was making Spike think wicked, completely inappropriate thoughts.
Yet still, he noticed the fear behind the fire in her eyes, and the slight, uncertain hesitation in her pace every so often. He gritted his teeth and gripped the handle of the battleaxe under his duster. Someone was going to pay for making her like this, and even more, for thinking they could hurt Dawn, his Lil Bit. They were gonna pay in body pieces and blood, whatever shade or texture it may be.
He stole another quick glance over at Buffy wondering if he should reach out to her, comfort her in some way if possible. He ran his blunt teeth over his bottom lip thoughtfully, waging a battle inside his mind of what to do. He didn't want her to think he was taking advantage of the situation, but he also didn't want her to think he wasn't concerned. He groaned softly, feeling like a complete wanker.
So before he could give it a second thought and curse himself for being an idiot, he reached over and put a hand on her shoulder lightly, to find it trembling in the minutest way. His eyes fell on her and he gave her shoulder a soft squeeze.
Her eyes locked with his and she felt a wave of calm come over her. Taking a deep breath, reached nodded slightly; answering the silent question he'd posed. His head moved slightly in return.
She smiled a fleeting smile of reassurance, feeling a bout of renewed strength from their silent communication. She reached up, covering his hand on her shoulder. She gave it a squeeze and her warm fingers lingered on his grasp for a moment. It was amazing how just a look and a touch could renew her spirit and push away her doubt and fears. It was truly a gift; his silent vigil at her side gave her more strength than she'd ever possessed. She pulled his arm off her shoulder gently. The spot he touched burned white hot.
Spike expected her to let go of his hand, finally repulsed at his cold touch. Instead, she laced her her fingers around his, gripping tightly. He was surprised, but made no noise of it. One didn't look a gift horse in the mouth, or some other clichéd saying like that.
Buffy avoided eye contact, blushing from her show of affection. She wanted to return his affection and support for once. Dawn was important to him too, and he must be as afraid as her.
She finally braved a look at him, and she nearly collapsed at the intense gaze he had on her; not to mention the beautiful smile on his lips. She ached to just pull him close, and let him hold her. Let him tell her that everything would be okay, Dawn was safe, the world was safe, and she was loved. But now was not the time.
She turned her head from him. There'd be time later to kiss him and tell him she wanted to give him to give her the chance to love him back. Once Dawn was safe, she'd deal with her feelings for Spike once and for all. Her mind shifted back to the Slayer: rescue sister mode. With Spike at her side, she felt confident that Dawn would be okay.
"Slayer, look!" Spike pointed, his keen eyesight spotting a tall
building up ahead.
"Looks like the SunnyD Main Power Supply Terminal. Perfect hideout
for General Electric and the Vidartha..."
Buffy's less-keen eyesight squinted in the dark of the night, searching ahead. Finally, she could read a sign stating what Spike already saw. "This is it!!"
"I hope so Buffy," Willow frowned. "The orb's sensing too much power all at once, its hard to decipher Dawn's in all this..." the orb in Will's hand glowed a strange mix of different colors, like a disco ball.
Angel stood beside Tara and Willow examining the building. "Should we split up?"
Buffy examined the area. "I don't think we'll need to." Bright lights shimmered in the dark night, coming from the power supplies wires. "If the bastard's starting his ritual, he'll have to be doing it from the generator room." Buffy turned back to her friends. "Will, Tara, you sure you guys wanna go in there?"
"We can help, spells and s-stuff," Tara nodded. "Once we get to Dawn, we may need t-to use our magic."
"Okay," Buffy nodded, relieved to have magic aid. Not to mention, two vamps who would stop at nothing to help her. "Let's go then!" She stormed off, kicking in a door.
Angel stood behind a moment, amazed at the strength
this once fragile girl now possessed. Even though he'd seen it again
and again tonight, he was in awe of the changes she'd made in her life
as she grew up. *Well, all changes except for her love for Spike*
he snorted mentally, storming in after the two witches, bringing up the
rear.
Dawn squirmed; pulling and digging her feet into the ground while Fortis pulled her by the chains around her wrists. He was dragging her to a room lined with huge barrels of humming, pulsing sound. A generator room. She doubled her efforts against the minion, seeing Vidartha in the room, hissing, waiting.
"Glad to see you could join us dear..." Vidartha hissed.
"Like I had a choice?" she shot back, furious.
He ignored her impetuousness. "Your time has almost come, old one. Your power will bring me invincibility!"
"She will give you great powers, master and we will rule the world!" Fortis tossed her down at his creator's feet.
"What are you going to do to me?" Dawn's asked, not sure whether to be completely afraid or inconsolably furious.
"Dear, I will draw from your body all that gives you the inner strength of the ancients, until you shrivel up and vanish into oblivion," Vidartha responded, drawing it's lips into what could be considered a smile. One of his tentacles stretched out and plucked another human Dawn hadn't noticed in the shadows before. He pulled the unconscious human to its body, tentacle wrapped around it. "Watch and observe if you're curious, child. It will be more painful for you however. Someone of your caliber will need to be awake so I can absorb your powers."
Dawn's heart pounded heavily in pure terror, watching the helpless male in the vile creature's tentacles struggle feebly, though to no avail.
"Fortis, some power please," Vidartha laughed. Why use his own strength gathered from the days when the humans' generated power could do the same job?
Fortis shot a blaze of power to the electrical wires in the room into one of the generators. The bolt hit the wires, buzzing them to life. They sparked and sizzled with power.
Vidartha closed his beady eyes, as the power radiated to him, making him glow white with energy.
Two of his four hands came from his sides and
Dawn noted with no small measure of disgust that they were shaped like
suction cups on the underside of an octopus. He placed them over
the human's ears and began drawing the power from the man.
The man's body glowed white, crinkling and wrinkling
as his life essence was drained. He soon caught fire from the intensity
of the transfusion and vanished in a wall of smoke and flame, leaving behind
a smell that made Dawn nauseous. She screamed in terror as the last of
the human dissipated, too frozen in fear to do much else. She screamed
loudly, over and over.
Vidartha turned, laughing magiacally. "It's your turn, my dear..." He felt the surge of energy from the simple human he had just taken. He'd needed the mortal's power to absorb this special girl's essence. Once all of her essence was obtained, he would be unstoppable. His tentacles whipped out at Dawn, grabbing hold of her.
Dawn's screams grew so loud, her throat burned. She wriggled furiously in its tight grasp, but there was no freeing herself. She squeezed her eyes shut tightly, knowing this would be the end for her. She thought of Buffy and Spike and the gang. She hoped they knew she loved them.
Her tears poured down her face as she tried to think of something else besides the pain she was about to experience.
Vidartha's suction-cup hands closed in on her head, and he began sucking her life essence, already feeling a super charge.
Dawn screamed in pain as the hands pulled at her head.
She could feel her very being drifting from her body. This was it;
her life was over.
"Which way?"
Willow studied the orb, still glowing in her hand, and turned left. "This way…we're getting closer…I think."
"What's the plan?" Angel asked, senses on full alert for any potential danger.
"Get in, save Nibblet, kill everything else, get out," Spike muttered back to his sire in annoyance.
Angel snorted. "Oh, very well thought out, as always, William. How about a plan that won't get anyone killed?" He looked at Buffy. "What's the real plan?"
She looked slightly guilty, her eyes sliding back in Spike's direction. Angel's mouth flailed open and shut several times. "You've got to be kidding me."
She shook her head. "We don't have time for anything elaborate."
"Sheah. And it's not like you've been opposed to the rush in wieldin' the burnin' torches an' the pitchfork before, Angelus," Spike added, just to annoy his grand-sire. He turned serious at Buffy's slight expression of warning. "Sorry, baby," he muttered, instantly chastened.
"Once we get Dawn back you two can do the macho stomping thing as much as you want," she promised. "C'mon…"
"We're almost there…the orb is starting to change color…" Willow announced. "It's either down this hallway or that one…" She moved the glowing ball of light from side to side, pursing her lips. "Um…this one…"
Suddenly, Dawn's horrified scream split the air. The redhead's eyes grew wide. "Y-yeah…definitely this one…" she muttered, waving her other hand over the orb, causing it to disappear in a small flash of light, leaving only a trail of curling smoke behind. Spike didn't comment about the neatness of the trick, as per usual, but instead, with a growl that startled even Angel, pushed ahead of everyone and sprinted down the hall before anyone could say a word. Buffy followed not a foot behind.
Angel looked back to the two witches. "They're going to get themselves killed," he rumbled in irritation.
"They kinda get loopy about Dawn," Willow responded, taking off after her best friend. "Which is why we've got to be the reason people. C'mon!"
Hearing her scream had been horrible. The fear and the hopelessness projected from the voice of his girl sent him into a mind-numbing, paralytic fear and at the same time, an all encompassing, fearsome rage. He projected himself forward unwittingly, honing on the source of his treasure's fear, which radiated from the area in waves. His demon hunted it, drew him towards it without an unsure step. His heart raged at it, vowed that on his love for the girl, he'd destroy whatever it was that had dared touch a hair on his keep's precious head.
Spike flew towards the door marked "Generator Room" like the demon possessed that he was, and stopped only minimally at the door to gauge its reinforcement before plowing through the wood and snapping the inconsequential thing they called a latch from where it was lodged into the jamb. The door splintered inward with an echoing crack, and the furious vampire kicked the offending shards of wood and plastic from his path as he stormed in, drawing his battle ax from within the inside of his coat.
The site that greeted him forced a strangled roar from his throat and he lunged forward without so much as a thought. It was touching HIS girl. It held her in its limbs, drawing from her the light that he knew was inside, that beautiful shine that was hers to have and hers alone. The ax made it's decent towards a protruding tentacle of the fiend holding Dawn without missing a beat, and was scant inches away from lopping the offending limb off when Spike felt an enormous shock plow through his chest, knocking him backwards into the wall with enough force to dislodge some of the plaster from it. He grunted and shook himself, staggering to his feet, even as Buffy came barreling through the hole he'd made in the door. He looked up to see what had hit him, and saw the demon he'd fought a few days ago lumbering towards he and the slayer, crackling and buzzing sounds which the vampire guessed were annoyances. The shock he'd received would have been enough to kill him if he'd been alive in the first place, and he struggled with the humming his head was doing, wondering which was from his own head and which was coming from the nearby generators.
The electric minion extended an arm in the direction of Buffy's blind side as she raced towards Dawn, sword drawn. Spike growled and sprung, tackling her even as an enormous boom filled the air and the blow intended for the slayer slammed into the wall behind her. "Force like that, it'll kill humans!" he growled, letting Buffy up. "Angel and I will take care of Zap to it, you'n the Wicca's get Bit out from Big Ugly…" he breathed. She nodded, gave him a look that conveyed her need for him to be careful and her wish of good luck. He smiled that devil may care smile of his back at her, his way of telling her not to worry, and with a growl, launched himself at the electric minion, Angel not far behind.
Buffy hefted her sword and swung boldly at the demon with
it's tentacles wrapped around her baby sister, only to have one of the
slimy extensions disengage from the mist of green energy that had started
to form in the room and swat at her. The slayer ducked reflexively but
the back and forth movement of her attacker was faster than she had anticipated.
She grumbled in annoyance as her weapon was knocked from her grasp, falling
with a clatter to the concrete floor. She flipped into a somersault to
avoid the still flailing tentacle and dove towards the dropped blade, picking
it up even as she rolled to her feet.
Spike ducked a ferociously aimed bolt of electricity and Angel followed suit, but not before both vampires smelt the distinct aroma of singed hair. Biting back a snarky comment regarding his grand-poof's precious follicles, the younger vampire took the small opening he had from the recoil of the demon's arm and ducked under its defenses, muttering a quick oath as he kicked the creature in the chest, only to feel the bottom of his shoe grow incredibly hot, the shock sending him reeling backwards into Angel.
"Sorry," he grunted, springing to his feet again, as the older vampire also gained his feet.
"This isn't working," Angel muttered, hair still smoking. "We can't use metal weapons. It'll just fry us."
"So glad you figured that out, finally," Spike drawled insolently, motioning to his discarded ax. "But most of us already got there, Peachy."
"So what are we supposed to do?" Angel spat back, annoyed with his grand-childe's sarcasm.
"Still got a stake?" Spike murmured, extending his palm towards Angel.
Releasing the spring mechanism on one wrist, a stake snapped into his fingers. Spike snatched it without hesitation. "You really think this is going to work?" Angel asked, raising an eyebrow at his descendant skeptically.
Spike shrugged. "Haven't tried it yet. Might as well give it a go before you end up needin' Extra Strength Rogaine," he responded smugly. Angel sent him a look of death, but released his other stake and stepped to the right of his childe.
"On three," Angel instructed, eyes locked on the monster.
"Right."
"One…two…"
Spike leapt forward before Angel could finish counting.
"Dammit, Spike!" Angel growled, vamping out before following the younger vamp.
Stake drawn, Spike ducked under a blast of lightning that issued from the minion's hand, and using his momentum to send the stake in his arm flying forward, he embedded his weapon into the creature's forehead, piercing skin and bone. Spike drew back as fast as he could, even as the wood blackened from the charge it received when in contact with the demon's body. Angel followed after Spike with his own stake, plunging it into their opponent's chest when it still lumbered forward after Spike's what should have been fatal blow. "Well, that didn't work," the older vampire quipped, dodging a bolt of electricity the immensely brassed off minion shot in his direction, the blackened wood still stuck in its forehead and chest.
"Was worth a shot," Spike shrugged casually, dodging himself.
The green haze was growing in the room now, swirling in concentration around Dawn and the demon in particular. Buffy was vaguely aware of the sound of Willow and Tara murmuring in unison somewhere in the background, and heard Angel and Spike's grunts and growls. She forced herself to concentrate on getting Dawn out of danger, and dove towards the demon, only to be knocked back by the force of the energy surrounding it. She stared at it in surprise. "No…" she muttered, throwing her sword point first into the field. The weapon hit the invisible wall and crashed to the floor. "Dawn!!!" she shouted, rushing towards the wall, intent on punching her way through it.
"Buffy, wait!!" Willow called. "Give us a second…"
"What are you…" Buffy was cut off when the loose tentacle took another swipe at her. She dodged it by scant inches, swinging her head down and dropping her shoulders to avoid it.
Willow turned back to Tara and took her hand. The witches
stared at each other a moment, and linking thoughts; they concentrated
on Dawn and the glowing energy that poured forth from her. Suddenly, both
girls' eyes filled green, matching shade with that of Dawn's mist, and
turned towards the girl called Key. "Return!!" they shouted in unison,
extending their free hands at Dawn.
"Now what?" Angel grunted, patting down a small flame that had erupted on the lapel of his duster.
"Got one more stake?" Spike asked, noticing the demon was a little tipsy from injuries it had already sustained.
Angel pulled one out of the inside pocket of his duster and tossed it at Spike. "So glad you came up with such a new and improved plan," he drawled.
Spike flipped his grand-sire off, before moving to the right a bit. "Distract it."
"What?"
"Distract it. Wave your hands around and dance like a bloody monkey like Harris does, I don't care. Just get it off my back long enough for me to get in. Bloke like that's got to have a power switch somewhere, an' if it's not the head, and not the heart, should be round back…"
Angel growled. "Fine… just…don't get killed."
"Why Cream Puff, didn't know you cared," Spiked drawled, moving off as Angel called for the demon's attention.
"Care? I don't, but Buffy does," Angel responded, low enough so that he wasn't heard by his annoying descendant. After a second of internal debate on how to draw the thing's attention, he sighed, and threw his arms up, waving them wildly. "Hey ugly! Over here!!"
"Oh, very original," Spike muttered to himself, circling around to the demon's blindside. He silently crept around his opponent in a broad half-arc, coming up to it's left as it threw shocks and made unintelligible noises of anger at Angel, who had taken to picking up pieces of smoldering debris to toss at it to keep its attention off of Spike. Spike waited until he was completely behind the minion, and studied it intensely, ignoring the eye stinging brightness radiating from its body.
He used his hunter's instinct to look for any anomaly, something out of place in the otherwise uniform makeup of his opponent. Squinting into the light, he studied the gray skin underneath, while at the same time making a list of things this demon would need. A master… he looked over to the demon that Buffy and the Wicca's were handling…check, master. He tried to ignore the fleeting sense of dread that filled him upon seeing his Pigeon in that monster's grasp, and reminded himself that these sorts of things had to go one step at a time. Back to the minion, then. Power like that, needed a source of electricity, something to draw its energy from once its personal supply was used, recharge its batteries, so to speak. Right, there were generators all around. Power source, check. Minion would need some way of getting the power from the generator into himself too, right? A plug, or something. Spike squinted harder, looking for something along the demon's body. Outlet…outlet… he stopped.
Well ha bloody, ha, someone had a sense of humor up there.
It figured the anomaly he was looking for would be right on the demon's
ass. Rolling his eyes, Spike aimed his last stake and threw it, hard as
he could.
There was a roaring noise as Willow and Tara finished whatever spell it was they had been doing, and before long, Buffy realized that the noise was coming from an enraged demon, as the green mist swirled away from the creature in a magnificent show of light and energy, coming together in one brilliant sweep before diving back towards Dawn, where it belonged. It slammed into the teenager forcefully; so much so that Buffy half expected her sister to be knocked across the room. But Dawn remained stationary, as the last of the light returned to its rightful owner. "Can I hit it now?" Buffy asked Willow, lifting her sword, realizing the roaring demon still had its slimy tentacles on her sister.
"Go for it," Willow prompted her friend, smiling tiredly though triumphantly before turning back to her lover. She squeezed Tara's hand. "Good work."
Tara smiled. "You too."
Angel could smell the distinct scent of burning leather as he narrowly missed the last blast from the electricity demon, growling in his mind for Spike to hurry up, even as he picked up a large sized chunk of smoking plaster and tossed it at his enemy. It bounced off the creature's head and fizzled, though not before the demon's attention was grabbed and it roared in annoyance. Angel dodged another blast and hastily tried to pat out the small flame that had erupted on the tail of his duster.
Suddenly, his opponent bellowed like an animal and clutched at its backside, growling and howling in a mixture of rage and pain. Angel stopped running but still regarded it warily, picking up another chunk that had been dislodged from the wall in the melee, ready to throw it should he find the need.
The vampire let himself relax when the demon suddenly disintegrated
into itself, giving one last anguished cry as it did so. From behind it's
ashes stepped Spike, grinning that cocky ass son of a bitch grin he was
so famous for, and looking none the worse for wear after their little fiasco.
Angel clapped out the last of the flame nipping at the end of his duster.
The elder vampire was about to tell the younger where he could shove that
grin of his, but before he could speak, Spike looked over towards the remaining
action, where Buffy had plunged a sword into Vidartha's belly, causing
it to let go of Dawn, though it's tentacles still flailed dangerously close
to the weak, disoriented little girl. Angel watched as Spike jumped the
railing between them and the main floor of the generator room, duster flying
as he ran at inhuman speed towards Dawn.
"Dawn!!! Watch out! Get out of the way!!" Buffy yelled, trying to pull her sword out of the demon though the depth she had lodged it in made the task rather difficult. She looked towards her sister, who appeared on the verge of collapse and finally pulled her sword out, aiming for one of the tentacles before it could hit Dawn. It looked as if she would be too late, until something all in black save for a brilliant shock of hair dove past her.
"Got her!" Spike called without turning around, heading in straight line for Dawn. "Kill it."
Spike dove before the tentacle could recoil into Dawn, grabbing her around the waist and pulling them to safety as the extension snapped sharply, cracking the air he and his Nibblet had occupied seconds before. He reversed their positions so he hit the floor first, and cradled her tightly in his embrace. Weak as she was, she still let out a whimper of pain upon impact, and the sound nearly broke his heart. "Sorry, beauty."
"Spike…" she murmured tiredly. "Is it…is it really you?"
He nodded and held her there on the floor, even as the sound of demon parts getting hacked by both the brooding one and a furious slayer sounded in the background. "Yeah, it's me. In the flesh, Sweet Pea."
She relaxed a little against him, and her eyelids fluttered in exhaustion. "Smelled like you," she revealed weakly. "So, it's okay now?"
"I've got you, Bit, don't worry," he assured her gently. "It's okay, I've got you."
"Good. I knew you'd come." She sighed softly and went limp
in his arms, allowing herself to pass out for the first time since the
blinding pain had started, knowing she was safe now, and that everything
was going to be all right.
