SPIKE & DRU: WORLD AT WAR
CHAPTER TWO:
THE WORLD BACK THEN PART II
The small German country town was deadly still as the two vampires strolled through its abandoned streets. Drusilla danced from one side of the road to the other, swinging around lampposts and laughing happily. A huge grin extended from one side of her face to the other and Spike was always glad to see his girl happy and nothing made her happier than a massacre.
Things had been easier for them over the years of the war than ever before. People were living in fear of the harsh reality of conflict not to worry about what they didn't think even existed. They'd fed off victims all across Europe and now, as the conflict was slowly winding down, they thought it was time to make the most of the easy pickings in Germany.
"Run, Spike, run!" Dru called as she darted towards her lover, wrapping her arms around his neck. He looked over to see an angry resident coming to the door of his home - the door that Dru had just knocked - and shouted at them in German. Spike burst out laughing as he grabbed her hand and they ran to an alleyway, not out of fear but the adrenalin brought on by the excitement.
They got around and fell back onto the brick wall giggling. If they weren't dead they would have been out of breath but both had realised this was one of the many advantages of being a vampire. Spike pushed Drusilla into the wall roughly as she accepted his kiss, her hands wrapping around his waist and pulling him even closer. She moaned a little as he grabbed her hair. He pulled away to see the smile on her face. "Don't stop sweetie... Keep on going..."
Spike nodded as he began to grind himself against her. Suddenly he was pulled away with force and span around to see five vampires, game faces on, grinning maliciously at them. "Have you forgotten curfew time? Started five hours ago..." He was British too. From the accent Spike guessed from somewhere along the south coast. He didn't look all that old either. He was probably turned in his early twenties and the scar on his neck hadn't completely healed yet. Knowing his adversary, he smiled back, a mock subservient smile that he used to lull enemies into a false sense of security.
"Really? Wouldn't know mate. Been busy with me girl here..." he replied, tugging himself free of their grasp. "Not sure what you're doing out. Probably passed your bedtime."
"Don't usually go for the live ones," the younger vampire cockily noted, more to his companions than to Spike. "But I think we should make an exception..." He lurched towards Spike who easily sidestepped and pushed his face into the stone wall. He grabbed the upstart's hair and repeatedly smashed it again and again until blood started to trickle from his broken nose. He threw him to the floor violently and looked at the others. They were dumbstruck. Spike just shook his head in dismay.
"How bloody stupid are you lot?" he exclaimed. "I'm one of you!" He morphed into his vamp face just to prove the point then kicked his enemy on the floor once more just for the sake of it. He looked over the ragged group of vampires with disdain. "Now, what was this wanker here saying about only going for the dead ones?"
A small, weedy vampire with a pair of small spectacles on his nose stood forward. "Um... what he meant was, uh..." he began in a French accent, trying to find the words he needed in English, "that we... you know..."
"No, mate, I don't..." Spike pushed him to the floor with hardly any effort and turned to the next one. "Let's hope you've got a better answer."
The next vampire seemed nervous but there was still a cocky edge to him. He spat at Spike before realising his mistake. Drusilla moved forward almost gracefully and thrust her sharp nails into his eyes, pulling him down to his knees. He called out in agony as Dru gave his a filthy glare. "You've been a naughty boy dirtying my Spike like that. You have to be punished..." She pulled her nails out again and stared at the blood that trickled down them. "Dirty! Dirty!" she called out.
Spike took the newfound fear as a chance to look at the remaining two. "Now, how about you being a little more helpful. What do you mean by dead ones?"
They finally accepted there was no chance of escape from this without permanent injury. "Well, we've spent the last few years feeding off the bodies we find in bombings. It's... well, it's easier isn't it?" Spike shook his head then swung around, punching the answerer in the face violently. He fell backwards but managed to maintain his balance. "I answered your question!" he exclaimed with shock in his voice. "Why'd you do that?"
"Because you're a bloody ponce, that's why!" Spike kicked the leader of the group who was trying to get up from the floor. "You all are! What's the sodding point in that? Where's the excitement? The thrill? The violence!?! You're almost as bad as that poofter..."
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"Angelus..." General Grellik mused in German. "Could it really be him surfacing after all this time?" He looked towards Lieutenant Hoffmann. The officer didn't say anything. He knew this was a rhetorical question and saying anything to interrupt the general's train of thought was just plain dangerous. Grellik continued. "The reports do seem to suggest a male and a female. Angelus and Darla back after all this time. It's been far too long since I've seen them."
He got out of his seat and looked to the wall that was covered with Nazi paraphernalia, from flags to portraits of the Fuhrer himself. He nodded to himself and looked back to the lieutenant. "I want them found and brought here..."
"Sir, is that wise? After what they've done is bringing them back a really bad idea?"
"It's a good idea. Now I know who I'm facing... that it's not just any old couple of wannabes I think I can deal with them." He sat down again and stroked the arm of his chair. Send out thirty men. Expect fatalities."
The lieutenant nodded and turned to leave. He suddenly stopped, span around and extended his arm out diagonally into a salute. He left without saying anymore, leaving the general alone. Grellik smiled to himself. "It appears the Order of Aurealius is back in town. Interesting..."
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Spike looked at the five vampires, some in pain, some not, with exasperation. He couldn't believe what they were telling him. "Don't you people even know what it is to be what we are? The hunt is natural to us. We have to do it!"
"Why bother when you can feed quick and easy like..." the leader, how was now allowed to get back up asked. "I'm all for the easy life if it's offered to me..."
"And that's why I could kick your arse you pansy..." Spike frowned. He eyed them all up again and realised that they were far more pathetic than they had originally seemed. They were laughable. "What am I to do with you lot?" He chuckled to himself a little. "I was thinking of starting a gang but just look at you all..." He tried to stop himself laughing out loud. "You probably couldn't bite a bleedin' snail. Moves too fast for you."
The leader questioned Spike with his eyes. "This is my gang unless you're forgetting."
"As a matter of fact I did." Spike grabbed him again and kicked him to the floor. A piece of metal plating was leaning against the wall next to him. He picked it up and brought it back down through the vampire's neck, reducing him to dust. He looked at the others. "Now, any of you want to argue?"
The weedy one shrugged. "Where'd we sign up?"
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From above, two figures were looking down on them. The first, the shorter of the two, had a slim female figure and seemed eager to make a move on the small group. She reached to her side to grab something when he companion rested his hand on hers. He shook his head.
"Not now."
"But..."
"We wait."
The female reluctantly moves out of her offensive stance and stood back just as Spike looked up in their direction.
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Drusilla rested her hand on Spike's arm. He had been looking to the roof of the building they were standing next to with a serious expression on his face. "What is it, luv?" He shook his head and looked at the gang again.
"Nothing... just bloody paranoid. You know how I get when things are going too well."
"The spear of the monster scares you... but it shouldn't." she said with a repressed giggle. She turned away and said nothing more. Spike was about to question it when he heard a familiar sound in the distance getting closer. "Damn it. They're out."
He looked around the corner. He was right. A whole battalion of German soldiers stalking the streets. He wasn't too naïve to think they were after someone else. He ducked back into the cover of the alleyway and lowered his voice to a whisper. "They're after us, pet. Too many to fight. At least the last lot we had didn't have guns."
The four members of his newfound gang were beginning to edge away from them, about to make a run for it. "And where d'you think you're going, boys?" Spike asked. They turned around and it was obvious they were hoping he wouldn't notice them leave. They really were as stupid as they seemed.
"Well, you said you were gonna make a getaway..." the weedy one, who had somehow become the spokesman for the group answered nervously. "So we thought we'd..."
"I meant me and Dru were getting away. You're going to give us time to do that..."
"You've got to be joking! They'll shoot us!"
"It won't kill you!"
"It'll still hurt!"
With a violent shove, Spike pushed the weedy vampire out into the street. He staggered around a little before realising that he'd been spotted. His eyes filled with panic as he tried to make his way back into the alley. Before he could even make one step he was showered with bullets, the sheer force of the blows sending him to the ground. The soldiers ran to him as he looked up at them with fear in his eyes. He tried to play dead but it was too late. The last thing he noticed was one of them bringing out a stake and thrusting it into his heart.
The lead soldier pointed towards the alleyway and the other stormed into it, throwing the other three vamps around. Within seconds the dust that was originally their bodies was floating through the air causing one of the soldiers to sneeze. They looked up to see Drusilla scrambling onto the roof. One raised his gun to fire but was stopped. "Nicht feuern Sie ab" he exclaimed as he ordered some to climb up while he and the others went through the building itself.
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"Come on! Hurry up!" Spike shouted in Dru's direction. "We have to... bugger."
He suddenly stopped in his tracks. Twenty soldiers were already in front of him. They must have been sent a different way around. He cursed himself before morphing into his game face and jumping at them without uttering a word. The first two were knocked backwards, losing their grip on the sloping roof and slipping down to the ground, bringing up the slate tiles until they landed with a dull thud on the floor.
Spike felt a set of arms around his neck. He grabbed back and got his hands onto the shoulders and with very little effort sent another soldier over his back and onto the ground below. He grabbed the end of a gun that was being aimed at him and was able to twist it around just in time for it to fire at its owner, staining the roof behind him with blood.
During this, Drusilla was clawing her way through more soldiers. Five more had fallen from the roof, two of which had jumped to avoid further punishment. One of the tiles beneath Dru's feet suddenly broke off, sending her hurtling in the direction of their enemies. Spike held out his hand to grab hers but it only ended with him falling with her...
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The doors to General Grellik's office were pushed open and the two vampires were prodded through much to the general's surprise. He eyed them up carefully and frowned. "You two."
"You were expecting someone else?" Spike asked.
"Yes... yes... but that's not the point." His shocked face turned into a smile, one that Spike recognised all too much. It had been a while and the uniform made a difference but it was definitely him.
"Grellik," he said with a half smile. "How the bloody hell did you get here?"
"I work here. And, it seems, so do you..."
"Don't put the high-and-mighty, cocky-as-hell thing on me. I remember you when you were living in the sewers back in London. Right smelly git you were if I remember..."
Some of the soldiers looked at each other, questioning what they'd just heard. As far as they knew the general had been a great warrior from a noble clan of demons who had impressed the Fuhrer and been allowed to lead his armies... albeit in secret. If the public knew that Hitler was allowing an impure demon into his party there could have been uproar. Yet now, according to this vampire, his noble background may have been a lie.
One quick stare from the general was more than enough to stop their thoughts. Even if this was true, his power over them remained. Grellik eyed Spike and Drusilla over with interest. "I didn't think I'd see you ever again. There were rumours that you'd been killed in China nearly fifty years ago."
"Or that's what you'd hoped..." Spike hated the demon. During their time in London back in early 1880 just after he was turned they'd been rivals. To get away from Angelus' oppressive nature, he'd gone out into the streets to hunt. There he'd met Grellik who challenged him. Whoever killed the most people would win. Only problem was, every time Spike came close to winning over a victim through charm, Grellik would appear to scare them off. The challenge was called off when several city residents had forced them out of London and up north into Yorkshire.
Still, his rise up the ranks of the German army was pretty impressive. Even Spike was willing to admit that no matter how reluctantly. The soldiers were sent out and Grellik offered seats to the two vampires. Drusilla refused to sit because she was convinced there were tiny invisible pins all over the chair and she could feel them poking into her just by going close to it.
Spike got to the point. "So why are we here? You didn't kill us like the bunch of arses we picked up back there..."
"And there's the thing, William..."
"It's Spike now..."
"Of course. Might I ask why?"
"You could, but it'd be easier to go see the bodies with holes in their heads thanks to me."
"Amusing. But that's not the point."
"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing."
"The spears. They're all over the room." Drusilla began to look around nervously at nothing in particular. "They point towards me..." She stopped and shook her head, tugging at her hair. "No, no, no. That's not right..." She looked at Grellik then at Spike. "They're pointing at you! They are!"
Grellik seemed a little nervous but only showed it for a split second before returning to his usual calm. Spike motioned for Dru to hush before turning his attention back to the general. "So how exactly did you manage to get yourself on the losing side of this war. Thought you had more sense than that."
"The losing side... yes..." Grellik mused. "And therein lies my problem. You probably travel around and don't get much news..."
"Don't patronise me. I pinch newspapers."
"He can't read the gibberish but we look at all the pretty pictures..." Dru interrupted before stopping and laughing to herself. She started to flick through the books on the shelves paying no real attention to any of it.
Grellik continued. "Whatever the case may be, you clearly know that Germany is losing this war. Despite our best intentions things have gone dramatically downhill since the Normandy landings. The reason can only be the weak leader."
"Yeah, I heard old Adolf was all talk no balls..." he smiled at the joke he hadn't intentionally made. "but that talk's got a lot of power behind it. He's an evil git. You have to respect him for that."
"But he's human. He's flawed. If this country is to win, if it's to dominate the globe, it needs a strong leader!"
"And that'd be you?"
"Naturally. You can deny that I'm not in a good position. And, of course, there are ways that the position will fall into my hands." He held out his brown scaly hands and looked at something that wasn't there. He stopped and put them back onto his desk. "Maybe with your help I could make the world a better place for both of our kinds."
Spike was suspicious. If Grellik had means of doing this there was a good chance it involved magic of some kind. It always did. It was one of the only things more powerful than the speeches that the great politician Hitler admittedly was had given out. Still, better to let the humans stay in control where he could have his freedom than end up Grellik's lapdog.
There was a long pause in which Spike seemed to think this proposition over. He looked at his hands, which were placed in his lap and twiddled his thumbs a little. Grellik coughed to get his attention. "Well?"
"How about I tell you to bugger off."
"I'm offering you great power."
"Mate, if there's power to be had then I'd rather have it myself rather than share it with some would-be dictator like you. Sorry, it ain't gonna happen."
Spike got to his feet and grabbed Drusilla's arm, roughly pulling her towards the door. "We're going, pet," he said as he stormed towards the door. Dru growled quietly. "My Spike's being assertive. Grrr..." she grinned.
"You'll regret this!" Grellik called after them. "Everything is in motion. You've given up your chance to..." The door slammed shut before he could finish his sentence. The demon brought his fist down on the polished oak table leaving a mark. He got to his feet and went to the bookshelf. Then it struck him. The most important text there was missing!
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The guards moved away to let the two vampires leave. They walked straight out of the offices and into the countryside before Drusilla began to look a little uncomfortable. Spike glanced at her. "You okay, luv?" he asked as she began to lift up her skirt. A smile covered his lips but she quickly countered it.
"Not now. Naughty boy." She pulled out a book from under the various layers she was wearing. "The. Spear," she grinned as she flicked absently through pages.
"Looks like a book to me."
She poked his nose lightly and giggled. "I know that, silly. It's what he craves but he can't have it. Oh no. *They* want it to. And the Duke of Stars."
"A spear? So what. Not like we need to make some big fuss over it. Give me my bloody fangs any day."
Dru kneeled down and carefully placed the book on the floor. She got up and began to dance around it, sounding out each syllable with a different movement. "It's shrouded in mystery!"
"And?" the continually sceptic Spike muttered.
Dru stopped dancing and grabbed either side of his face. "Whoever unlocks its secrets..." She pressed her lips against his then pulled back again. "...will rule the world."
This piqued her lover's interest. "Rule the world. Wait a minute... is this what old Grellik wants? How'd you know?"
Her voice lowered to a whisper as she leaned towards his ear. "They told me..." She pointed all around then jumped back as if in shock.
Spike picked the book up from the floor and opened it. "The Spear of Destiny..." he read. "used at the Crucifixion to wound the side of Christ." He looked up from the book. "You know I'm not too keen on that religious stuff. You know what crosses do to us..."
"Keep reading! Keep reading!" Dru pleaded. He did.
According to legend, possession of the Spear would bring its owner the power to conquer the world, but losing it would bring immediate death. The relic had been owned by a succession of powerful European rulers down through the centuries including such notables as Herod the Great, Constantine, Justinian, Emperor Charlemagne, Otto the Great, Kaiser Wilhelm and eventually came to be in the possession of the Hapsberg Dynasty.
Spike looked at Drusilla as they began to walk through the undergrowth towards the town before daylight came. "You know, pet, I've been a bit bored recently," he said musingly. Maybe this'll give us something to with our time. At least for the duration of this bleeding war."
Drusilla began to jump up and down giving squeals of excitement. "I'm going to be a queen!"
Spike put his arm around her as they walked into the darkness of the forest. "Of the world, luv, of the world..."
To be continued...
CHAPTER TWO:
THE WORLD BACK THEN PART II
The small German country town was deadly still as the two vampires strolled through its abandoned streets. Drusilla danced from one side of the road to the other, swinging around lampposts and laughing happily. A huge grin extended from one side of her face to the other and Spike was always glad to see his girl happy and nothing made her happier than a massacre.
Things had been easier for them over the years of the war than ever before. People were living in fear of the harsh reality of conflict not to worry about what they didn't think even existed. They'd fed off victims all across Europe and now, as the conflict was slowly winding down, they thought it was time to make the most of the easy pickings in Germany.
"Run, Spike, run!" Dru called as she darted towards her lover, wrapping her arms around his neck. He looked over to see an angry resident coming to the door of his home - the door that Dru had just knocked - and shouted at them in German. Spike burst out laughing as he grabbed her hand and they ran to an alleyway, not out of fear but the adrenalin brought on by the excitement.
They got around and fell back onto the brick wall giggling. If they weren't dead they would have been out of breath but both had realised this was one of the many advantages of being a vampire. Spike pushed Drusilla into the wall roughly as she accepted his kiss, her hands wrapping around his waist and pulling him even closer. She moaned a little as he grabbed her hair. He pulled away to see the smile on her face. "Don't stop sweetie... Keep on going..."
Spike nodded as he began to grind himself against her. Suddenly he was pulled away with force and span around to see five vampires, game faces on, grinning maliciously at them. "Have you forgotten curfew time? Started five hours ago..." He was British too. From the accent Spike guessed from somewhere along the south coast. He didn't look all that old either. He was probably turned in his early twenties and the scar on his neck hadn't completely healed yet. Knowing his adversary, he smiled back, a mock subservient smile that he used to lull enemies into a false sense of security.
"Really? Wouldn't know mate. Been busy with me girl here..." he replied, tugging himself free of their grasp. "Not sure what you're doing out. Probably passed your bedtime."
"Don't usually go for the live ones," the younger vampire cockily noted, more to his companions than to Spike. "But I think we should make an exception..." He lurched towards Spike who easily sidestepped and pushed his face into the stone wall. He grabbed the upstart's hair and repeatedly smashed it again and again until blood started to trickle from his broken nose. He threw him to the floor violently and looked at the others. They were dumbstruck. Spike just shook his head in dismay.
"How bloody stupid are you lot?" he exclaimed. "I'm one of you!" He morphed into his vamp face just to prove the point then kicked his enemy on the floor once more just for the sake of it. He looked over the ragged group of vampires with disdain. "Now, what was this wanker here saying about only going for the dead ones?"
A small, weedy vampire with a pair of small spectacles on his nose stood forward. "Um... what he meant was, uh..." he began in a French accent, trying to find the words he needed in English, "that we... you know..."
"No, mate, I don't..." Spike pushed him to the floor with hardly any effort and turned to the next one. "Let's hope you've got a better answer."
The next vampire seemed nervous but there was still a cocky edge to him. He spat at Spike before realising his mistake. Drusilla moved forward almost gracefully and thrust her sharp nails into his eyes, pulling him down to his knees. He called out in agony as Dru gave his a filthy glare. "You've been a naughty boy dirtying my Spike like that. You have to be punished..." She pulled her nails out again and stared at the blood that trickled down them. "Dirty! Dirty!" she called out.
Spike took the newfound fear as a chance to look at the remaining two. "Now, how about you being a little more helpful. What do you mean by dead ones?"
They finally accepted there was no chance of escape from this without permanent injury. "Well, we've spent the last few years feeding off the bodies we find in bombings. It's... well, it's easier isn't it?" Spike shook his head then swung around, punching the answerer in the face violently. He fell backwards but managed to maintain his balance. "I answered your question!" he exclaimed with shock in his voice. "Why'd you do that?"
"Because you're a bloody ponce, that's why!" Spike kicked the leader of the group who was trying to get up from the floor. "You all are! What's the sodding point in that? Where's the excitement? The thrill? The violence!?! You're almost as bad as that poofter..."
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"Angelus..." General Grellik mused in German. "Could it really be him surfacing after all this time?" He looked towards Lieutenant Hoffmann. The officer didn't say anything. He knew this was a rhetorical question and saying anything to interrupt the general's train of thought was just plain dangerous. Grellik continued. "The reports do seem to suggest a male and a female. Angelus and Darla back after all this time. It's been far too long since I've seen them."
He got out of his seat and looked to the wall that was covered with Nazi paraphernalia, from flags to portraits of the Fuhrer himself. He nodded to himself and looked back to the lieutenant. "I want them found and brought here..."
"Sir, is that wise? After what they've done is bringing them back a really bad idea?"
"It's a good idea. Now I know who I'm facing... that it's not just any old couple of wannabes I think I can deal with them." He sat down again and stroked the arm of his chair. Send out thirty men. Expect fatalities."
The lieutenant nodded and turned to leave. He suddenly stopped, span around and extended his arm out diagonally into a salute. He left without saying anymore, leaving the general alone. Grellik smiled to himself. "It appears the Order of Aurealius is back in town. Interesting..."
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Spike looked at the five vampires, some in pain, some not, with exasperation. He couldn't believe what they were telling him. "Don't you people even know what it is to be what we are? The hunt is natural to us. We have to do it!"
"Why bother when you can feed quick and easy like..." the leader, how was now allowed to get back up asked. "I'm all for the easy life if it's offered to me..."
"And that's why I could kick your arse you pansy..." Spike frowned. He eyed them all up again and realised that they were far more pathetic than they had originally seemed. They were laughable. "What am I to do with you lot?" He chuckled to himself a little. "I was thinking of starting a gang but just look at you all..." He tried to stop himself laughing out loud. "You probably couldn't bite a bleedin' snail. Moves too fast for you."
The leader questioned Spike with his eyes. "This is my gang unless you're forgetting."
"As a matter of fact I did." Spike grabbed him again and kicked him to the floor. A piece of metal plating was leaning against the wall next to him. He picked it up and brought it back down through the vampire's neck, reducing him to dust. He looked at the others. "Now, any of you want to argue?"
The weedy one shrugged. "Where'd we sign up?"
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From above, two figures were looking down on them. The first, the shorter of the two, had a slim female figure and seemed eager to make a move on the small group. She reached to her side to grab something when he companion rested his hand on hers. He shook his head.
"Not now."
"But..."
"We wait."
The female reluctantly moves out of her offensive stance and stood back just as Spike looked up in their direction.
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Drusilla rested her hand on Spike's arm. He had been looking to the roof of the building they were standing next to with a serious expression on his face. "What is it, luv?" He shook his head and looked at the gang again.
"Nothing... just bloody paranoid. You know how I get when things are going too well."
"The spear of the monster scares you... but it shouldn't." she said with a repressed giggle. She turned away and said nothing more. Spike was about to question it when he heard a familiar sound in the distance getting closer. "Damn it. They're out."
He looked around the corner. He was right. A whole battalion of German soldiers stalking the streets. He wasn't too naïve to think they were after someone else. He ducked back into the cover of the alleyway and lowered his voice to a whisper. "They're after us, pet. Too many to fight. At least the last lot we had didn't have guns."
The four members of his newfound gang were beginning to edge away from them, about to make a run for it. "And where d'you think you're going, boys?" Spike asked. They turned around and it was obvious they were hoping he wouldn't notice them leave. They really were as stupid as they seemed.
"Well, you said you were gonna make a getaway..." the weedy one, who had somehow become the spokesman for the group answered nervously. "So we thought we'd..."
"I meant me and Dru were getting away. You're going to give us time to do that..."
"You've got to be joking! They'll shoot us!"
"It won't kill you!"
"It'll still hurt!"
With a violent shove, Spike pushed the weedy vampire out into the street. He staggered around a little before realising that he'd been spotted. His eyes filled with panic as he tried to make his way back into the alley. Before he could even make one step he was showered with bullets, the sheer force of the blows sending him to the ground. The soldiers ran to him as he looked up at them with fear in his eyes. He tried to play dead but it was too late. The last thing he noticed was one of them bringing out a stake and thrusting it into his heart.
The lead soldier pointed towards the alleyway and the other stormed into it, throwing the other three vamps around. Within seconds the dust that was originally their bodies was floating through the air causing one of the soldiers to sneeze. They looked up to see Drusilla scrambling onto the roof. One raised his gun to fire but was stopped. "Nicht feuern Sie ab" he exclaimed as he ordered some to climb up while he and the others went through the building itself.
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"Come on! Hurry up!" Spike shouted in Dru's direction. "We have to... bugger."
He suddenly stopped in his tracks. Twenty soldiers were already in front of him. They must have been sent a different way around. He cursed himself before morphing into his game face and jumping at them without uttering a word. The first two were knocked backwards, losing their grip on the sloping roof and slipping down to the ground, bringing up the slate tiles until they landed with a dull thud on the floor.
Spike felt a set of arms around his neck. He grabbed back and got his hands onto the shoulders and with very little effort sent another soldier over his back and onto the ground below. He grabbed the end of a gun that was being aimed at him and was able to twist it around just in time for it to fire at its owner, staining the roof behind him with blood.
During this, Drusilla was clawing her way through more soldiers. Five more had fallen from the roof, two of which had jumped to avoid further punishment. One of the tiles beneath Dru's feet suddenly broke off, sending her hurtling in the direction of their enemies. Spike held out his hand to grab hers but it only ended with him falling with her...
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The doors to General Grellik's office were pushed open and the two vampires were prodded through much to the general's surprise. He eyed them up carefully and frowned. "You two."
"You were expecting someone else?" Spike asked.
"Yes... yes... but that's not the point." His shocked face turned into a smile, one that Spike recognised all too much. It had been a while and the uniform made a difference but it was definitely him.
"Grellik," he said with a half smile. "How the bloody hell did you get here?"
"I work here. And, it seems, so do you..."
"Don't put the high-and-mighty, cocky-as-hell thing on me. I remember you when you were living in the sewers back in London. Right smelly git you were if I remember..."
Some of the soldiers looked at each other, questioning what they'd just heard. As far as they knew the general had been a great warrior from a noble clan of demons who had impressed the Fuhrer and been allowed to lead his armies... albeit in secret. If the public knew that Hitler was allowing an impure demon into his party there could have been uproar. Yet now, according to this vampire, his noble background may have been a lie.
One quick stare from the general was more than enough to stop their thoughts. Even if this was true, his power over them remained. Grellik eyed Spike and Drusilla over with interest. "I didn't think I'd see you ever again. There were rumours that you'd been killed in China nearly fifty years ago."
"Or that's what you'd hoped..." Spike hated the demon. During their time in London back in early 1880 just after he was turned they'd been rivals. To get away from Angelus' oppressive nature, he'd gone out into the streets to hunt. There he'd met Grellik who challenged him. Whoever killed the most people would win. Only problem was, every time Spike came close to winning over a victim through charm, Grellik would appear to scare them off. The challenge was called off when several city residents had forced them out of London and up north into Yorkshire.
Still, his rise up the ranks of the German army was pretty impressive. Even Spike was willing to admit that no matter how reluctantly. The soldiers were sent out and Grellik offered seats to the two vampires. Drusilla refused to sit because she was convinced there were tiny invisible pins all over the chair and she could feel them poking into her just by going close to it.
Spike got to the point. "So why are we here? You didn't kill us like the bunch of arses we picked up back there..."
"And there's the thing, William..."
"It's Spike now..."
"Of course. Might I ask why?"
"You could, but it'd be easier to go see the bodies with holes in their heads thanks to me."
"Amusing. But that's not the point."
"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing."
"The spears. They're all over the room." Drusilla began to look around nervously at nothing in particular. "They point towards me..." She stopped and shook her head, tugging at her hair. "No, no, no. That's not right..." She looked at Grellik then at Spike. "They're pointing at you! They are!"
Grellik seemed a little nervous but only showed it for a split second before returning to his usual calm. Spike motioned for Dru to hush before turning his attention back to the general. "So how exactly did you manage to get yourself on the losing side of this war. Thought you had more sense than that."
"The losing side... yes..." Grellik mused. "And therein lies my problem. You probably travel around and don't get much news..."
"Don't patronise me. I pinch newspapers."
"He can't read the gibberish but we look at all the pretty pictures..." Dru interrupted before stopping and laughing to herself. She started to flick through the books on the shelves paying no real attention to any of it.
Grellik continued. "Whatever the case may be, you clearly know that Germany is losing this war. Despite our best intentions things have gone dramatically downhill since the Normandy landings. The reason can only be the weak leader."
"Yeah, I heard old Adolf was all talk no balls..." he smiled at the joke he hadn't intentionally made. "but that talk's got a lot of power behind it. He's an evil git. You have to respect him for that."
"But he's human. He's flawed. If this country is to win, if it's to dominate the globe, it needs a strong leader!"
"And that'd be you?"
"Naturally. You can deny that I'm not in a good position. And, of course, there are ways that the position will fall into my hands." He held out his brown scaly hands and looked at something that wasn't there. He stopped and put them back onto his desk. "Maybe with your help I could make the world a better place for both of our kinds."
Spike was suspicious. If Grellik had means of doing this there was a good chance it involved magic of some kind. It always did. It was one of the only things more powerful than the speeches that the great politician Hitler admittedly was had given out. Still, better to let the humans stay in control where he could have his freedom than end up Grellik's lapdog.
There was a long pause in which Spike seemed to think this proposition over. He looked at his hands, which were placed in his lap and twiddled his thumbs a little. Grellik coughed to get his attention. "Well?"
"How about I tell you to bugger off."
"I'm offering you great power."
"Mate, if there's power to be had then I'd rather have it myself rather than share it with some would-be dictator like you. Sorry, it ain't gonna happen."
Spike got to his feet and grabbed Drusilla's arm, roughly pulling her towards the door. "We're going, pet," he said as he stormed towards the door. Dru growled quietly. "My Spike's being assertive. Grrr..." she grinned.
"You'll regret this!" Grellik called after them. "Everything is in motion. You've given up your chance to..." The door slammed shut before he could finish his sentence. The demon brought his fist down on the polished oak table leaving a mark. He got to his feet and went to the bookshelf. Then it struck him. The most important text there was missing!
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The guards moved away to let the two vampires leave. They walked straight out of the offices and into the countryside before Drusilla began to look a little uncomfortable. Spike glanced at her. "You okay, luv?" he asked as she began to lift up her skirt. A smile covered his lips but she quickly countered it.
"Not now. Naughty boy." She pulled out a book from under the various layers she was wearing. "The. Spear," she grinned as she flicked absently through pages.
"Looks like a book to me."
She poked his nose lightly and giggled. "I know that, silly. It's what he craves but he can't have it. Oh no. *They* want it to. And the Duke of Stars."
"A spear? So what. Not like we need to make some big fuss over it. Give me my bloody fangs any day."
Dru kneeled down and carefully placed the book on the floor. She got up and began to dance around it, sounding out each syllable with a different movement. "It's shrouded in mystery!"
"And?" the continually sceptic Spike muttered.
Dru stopped dancing and grabbed either side of his face. "Whoever unlocks its secrets..." She pressed her lips against his then pulled back again. "...will rule the world."
This piqued her lover's interest. "Rule the world. Wait a minute... is this what old Grellik wants? How'd you know?"
Her voice lowered to a whisper as she leaned towards his ear. "They told me..." She pointed all around then jumped back as if in shock.
Spike picked the book up from the floor and opened it. "The Spear of Destiny..." he read. "used at the Crucifixion to wound the side of Christ." He looked up from the book. "You know I'm not too keen on that religious stuff. You know what crosses do to us..."
"Keep reading! Keep reading!" Dru pleaded. He did.
According to legend, possession of the Spear would bring its owner the power to conquer the world, but losing it would bring immediate death. The relic had been owned by a succession of powerful European rulers down through the centuries including such notables as Herod the Great, Constantine, Justinian, Emperor Charlemagne, Otto the Great, Kaiser Wilhelm and eventually came to be in the possession of the Hapsberg Dynasty.
Spike looked at Drusilla as they began to walk through the undergrowth towards the town before daylight came. "You know, pet, I've been a bit bored recently," he said musingly. Maybe this'll give us something to with our time. At least for the duration of this bleeding war."
Drusilla began to jump up and down giving squeals of excitement. "I'm going to be a queen!"
Spike put his arm around her as they walked into the darkness of the forest. "Of the world, luv, of the world..."
To be continued...
