Title: Cheese: An Experiment in Fate
Author: Lyle Brown (LyleMHD) HTML Coding: Vandaline Z. Terrice
Summary: Cheese. Oh, for the sake of some cheddar, I've prepared each slice to get cut by my knife, and it's brought me to my current momentum, whereupon each slice can be compared with my life. And I know your patience to be shorter; I can't bring myself to cut the cheese, even when it's corroding roaches, I've got to care for the fleas. Hey, the third and (in my opinion) best part is here! Enjoy! Note that while no one is a main character, some do have bigger parts than others. Sorry.
Time Period: Alternate Universe, few spoilers (all seasons)
Disclaimer: I own nothing. What I'm doing with these
characters is very, very wrong; I know. Sorry again.
Rating: Hard R. Sex, murder, drugs, lotsa violence. It's
a story for the whole family!
Feedback- I love it. If you want to give me a happy, just
write to me at RedTower@myrealbox.com, or review if that's how it goes.
Flame me if you like, it gets kind of lonely here. Hell, correct my spelling
and grammar if it tickles your yurt. Just don't tell me about my fragment
sentences.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Well, here it is. The moment I've been looking forward to writing so much. And after seventy-five previous pages, I'm damn sure ready for a change in pace. So here's some high-octane action for you!
Cheese: An Experiment in Fate
by Lyle Brown
Part 3: Climax
Here we go again…
June 19th- June 20th
Thunder struck and winds howled. This storm was to mark the end of the small town in California known as Sunnydale. But it was not the storm itself that would destroy the town. It was what the storm held within it's blustery grasp...
* * * * *
Buffy ran down along the rain-filled street towards Giles' house. In a small bag across her shoulder she held a few days worth of clothing, a couple of stakes, some of her favorite weapons and Mr. Gordo. She figured it was all that she would need. She crossed Burbank, feeling slightly better with every step she took. She didn't love Giles; they both knew that. At least she didn't right now unless it was in a friendship sort of way. But she wanted more, and she thought that perhaps Giles could be the one to give to her what Angel could not.
A very loud explosion rocked the street left of her, pulling Buffy out of her thoughts. Turning, she ran around Jim's Steak and Ale to see a car on it's back, fire roaring as it sat there. She frowned. How the hell did that happen?
Checking to make sure no one she could save was trapped inside, she continued on her way. What else could she of done? Exploding cars weren't in her detail of work. But Buffy was unable to return to thinking about her life as she examined the sky above...and screamed.
* * * * *
Spike ran as fast as he could, his feet slapping in the water, his mind racing even faster as he tried to think of what he could do to get out of this mess. Explosions hit to his left and right, and screams from the other occupants in Sunnydale were filling the streets.
Making a turn too fast in the darkness, Spike slipped and fell, smashing his face into the thick, red puddle. Thick, red? He wiped his face, licking the tainted mixture off of his palm. Sure enough, blood was in the water. This particular stream of rainwater he'd fallen in was moving west, so...
He glanced to his east and shuddered. A dog was crushed underneath a heap of metal and glass, it's flesh and fur charred, it's eyes melting out of it's skull. He got to his feet and continued running as another one of them hit the spot where he'd just been. He felt the fire burning at his back. He hoped to make it to her in one peace.
* * * * *
Faith pressed her fingers to the cool glass of the plane window, sitting in a first class seat courtesy of Parker. Soon she'd be in the air, finally getting away from whatever power, whatever spell Sunnydale had put down upon her. She didn't like the idea of being alone for the rest of her life and she hoped that one-day people would forget about her and all that she'd done. For now though, as unfortunate as it may have seemed, she was on her own.
"Are you alone?"
She nodded to herself, whispering in a voice that no one would hear. "Very much so…"
"Excuse me? Miss, is anyone else sitting here?" He asked as though he were spelling it out to a child. She looked up, examining the blond young man looking down at her. She smiled a bit at his impatience with her.
"I don't know Mr. Smith, I just got here."
He frowned, unsure of what to do; a gray canvas-bag in one of his hands. "So no one else is here, I mean you didn't come here with anybody?"
She smiled again and nodded. "Yes actually, I did come here with someone."
He stared down at her. "Well then why didn't you tell me-"
"But he's not coming on the plane."
"Wha-...Ah, screw it." He sighed and put his bag in the compartment above them, then sat down next to her. "Alright, anybody asks, this is my seat. Says so on my ticket."
She nodded. "Got it, big boy. Just one question; why don't you sit in the seat that's really listed on your ticket?"
He shook his head, looking nervously around him. "Cause I don't have a ticket."
"Then how did you get on board?"
He stopped looking around and glanced back at her before pushing his forefinger to his lips. "Shh, it's a secret."
Before either of them could say anything more, a man in a security uniform ran on board flashing his ID at the stewardess and whispering in her ear. Both Faith and the mysterious passenger watched on curiously. The stewardess's eyes grew very wide and she nodded, the guard disappearing back out of the plane as she closed and secured it. Then she stopped another stewardess and whispered to her. That woman had the same reaction and ran off inside the cockpit. Meanwhile, the first woman smoothed out her dress and smiled nervously.
Faith leaned close to the man. "This your work?"
He shook his head, smirking curiously. "I don't think so…"
"Uh, hmm-mm, ladies and gentleman, our flight we'll be starting a bit earlier than usual today as we've been informed that certain towns in the area are experiencing some, uh, weather difficulties and, well we'd just like to get out of it before it hits us. So if you'll, uh just turn any laptops or other electrical equipment off and make sure you're trays are in an upright position, we can get started!"
Faith shook her head, examining one of Parker's credit cards.
"Benton." Faith looked up. The man had his hand put forth towards her. She shook it.
"Faith."
He nodded, smiling. "Well Faith, looks like we're in for an interesting ride."
Faith was now transfixed with the view outside her window. In the night sky she could see that only a few miles past the airport's entrance, right on the boundary of Sunnydale, hundreds of very large objects were falling from the sky. Still watching, she replied, "It certainly does…"
* * * * *
Riley laughed. He couldn't believe his luck. Tara turning into a demon and attacking him, Buffy leaving him trashed, going King on an almost innocent man (twice), nearly killing him the second time, and to top it off knocking some chick out of her head. And now he was dying. He'd known that luck could go bad quickly, but this was ridiculous. What was happening to him? He'd decided that it would be best to try and reach the local hospital and get both of his captures inside along with himself. He knew he'd lose his job for what he'd done to them, and probably worse. But it was better of an ending than any of the other scenarios he'd considered.
He wiped a bit of the blood from his mouth as he tried to keep a steady grasp of the wheel. His breath came in short, wheezy gasps and he knew he didn't have much energy left. If he didn't make it to Sunnydale Memorial in the next ten minutes... Suddenly a small object appeared in darkness of the sky about eighty yards up ahead.
Riley frowned and slowed the patrol car in spite of his injuries. What the hell is that? It was white and getting larger by the second. His gaze completely focused on the falling object, he momentarily forgot about his injuries. I-is that a... a car?
BOOM! Riley tried to scream at the loud explosion as the white van hit the pavement but ended up spewing a large amount of blood onto the interior of the windshield. Since his vision of the outside was now obstructed by the red liquid running down in front of him, Riley hit the brakes and turned the wheel harshly, pulling the vehicle in a tight fish-tail, gurgling as he did so.
As soon as he pulled to a stop, Riley pulled out his gun from his holster (though what good it would do him he didn't know) and opened the door, stepping out into the rain. He'd already been soaked to the bone, so the falling water didn't bother him that much.
But had he really seen what he thought he had? Had a car really just fallen out of the sky in front of him? There had to be some logical explanation… He jumped at a sudden clap of thunder, turning quickly and bringing up his gun. Nothing. He blinked, rainfall hitting against his pale face and eyelashes.
Something was entering his ears. Some sound... screaming? He shuddered, holding his hand to his chest and realizing that if he didn't get moving soon, he may fall down in the street from exhaustion and die right there. Walking back to the car, though, he was now sure that something was screaming. Trying to pinpoint the sound, Riley reached his vehicle.
The small compact Ford was on it's back when it slammed down onto his black and white. On either side of him about ten more cars also exploded to the earth, erupting in fire. When the Ford hit it crushed the top of his car flat, blowing glass out of the window, many of the shards entering his flesh and uniform. Unfortunately, he had been stooping and holding his chest instead of standing upright, so many small pieces hit him pointblank in the face and eyes, blinding him.
He flew back from the force of the car topping his own, slapping to the wet ground and writhing in pain, jamming his fingers into his eyes to try to get out the glass, but actually pushing them in further. This time a scream did break free from his throat, and his mind soared in the pain.
Riley heard the cars exploding all around him and didn't know what to do. He couldn't think straight from all of the pain encompassing the entire upper portion of his body. Thinking madly, he realized that Rayne and the girl were still in the back. The Ford hadn't exploded when it hit and still hadn't, otherwise he would've had the freedom of death kissing his bloody lips. He got up on his knees, gritting his teeth together to cut back from simply screaming until he did die and listened to all of the blasts as cars were destroying everything around him.
Putting a hand forward it only took him a few moments to feel his way to the smoothness of his ride. He continued left, seeing only darkness but knowing that everything was still around him, and that less than three feet away, two people were either lifeless bodies or extremely scared and still breathing. He got the keys out of his pocket as soon as he felt the end of the car and the top of the bumper, miraculously untouched. If any other kind of car had hit his own…
Feeling around for the keyhole, Riley heard nothing inside of the trunk. Not a good sign, but then again, who could hear much with the roar of falling cars and rain and thunder? The rain was such a consistent factor that his hands were wet enough to let the keys slip out from between his fingers.
"DAMMIT, GOD NO!" Riley screamed, feeling the ground beneath him. But he knew he wouldn't find them. Couldn't possibly. The street was layered in about two and a half inches of water from the rain, which had no doubt swept the keys away.
He was about to give up before he remembered one more thing that could unlock the trunk. Grinning madly, blood streaming down what remained of his face, Riley pointed the gun at the trunk and pulled the trigger... Nothing. He pulled again, this time harder. He gasped. The safety? Feeling the gun, sure enough, the safety was on. But then how had he...? All logic swept away, and suddenly all he cared about was firing at the trunk. He pushed the safety off and, still not realizing that those inside would also be shot, Riley pulled the trigger and again...nothing. He frowned, and the last thought that ran through his head was of a very pretty girl with long, curly blonde hair. Red mink, spinning the jack...
The Buick that crushed his life away, falling face first down upon him was vintage 1963. Of the police officers to die in this experience, Riley would be the first. Forty-one would follow in his lead, totaling the entire Sunnydale law enforcement squad save two. Those two were christened at birth Richard Swiss and Chimotza Rela, a Japanese intern.
Think about it...
* * * * *
Willow couldn't run much less drag herself very much further. Tara's dead weight on her was increasing dramatically every few seconds. Luckily, she didn't have to go much further. Two houses down, Xander was probably up with Anya, arguing over something or other. She hated herself for what she was about to do, but she had no other choice. This had to be done.
A Bronco fell down to the earth on it's side about ten feet away. It carried such a force with it that she was blown off her feet, landing in a nearby ditch with the body landing a few feet down from.
"FUCK!" She screamed, picking herself up and stumbling over to Tara. But no matter what she did, she couldn't summon up the strength to pick the other girl back up. Tired, wet and scared, Willow went for broke.
"Ishtul, Goddess, let…let this being rise."
Risking anybody seeing her, Willow asked the goddess to fly Tara along with her. She would've done it herself, but her physical and mental strength had already ebbed away, and she needed to reserve her magick for the spell she was to perform. She almost smiled when she saw Tara's body rise.
Another two cars fell to the earth almost simultaneously on either side of the rain-filled death, blocking her in. She climbed up one side and the body followed her along the carred and burning path.
...........
When she opened the door the first things she heard were Xander and Anya. Sure enough, they were arguing.
"I can't believe you did that!"
"Oh, what? You tried to have me killed! I hardly even hit you!"
Willow was shocked inwardly at what she was hearing from the living room, but outwardly she was too worn out to give any sort of expression. She moved past the kitchen towards the stairs with Tara's body floating behind.
Reaching the stairs she opened the door underneath, walking down and pointing towards the couch as a place for Tara to land. She did so, one hand lolling off the side and her head being supported by an armrest.
"Oh, what? You're packing?"
"YES, I'm leaving you Xander!"
"You know what, I was going to do the same to you so fine. Pack your stuff and get the hell out!"
A large noise resounded from above.
"Oh my god!"
"What?"
"Cars!"
"What?!"
"Cars, they're falling from the sky!"
Willow giggled a little, then remembered why she was there and stopped. Kneeling before Tara, she began summoning every smallest bit of power she had. And waited...
* * * * *
Cordelia screamed as another car blew a hole in the road next to her, causing her to swerve the fallen metal and avoid the fiery explosion. Not sixty seconds ago she'd been thinking of what the hell she was going to do with her life since it had gone to hell in a handbag so quickly. Now the only thing on her mind was getting out of town alive.
Unfortunately, once she reached the bridge she forced herself to stop. Someone was standing on the railings looking down at the stormy waters about fifty feet below. She tried to scream at him from inside her car, but even with the windows down the storm was too loud. Shaking in frustration, Cordelia unbuckled her seatbelt and got out of the red convertible.
"W-what are you doing?"
Whoever the person was, he was very large and looked...strange. But through the darkness she couldn't make out much. He looked back at her and a red beam shined into her eyes.
"Ending this nightmare."
"…What?"
"I can't be alive. Don't you see me?" His voice held an odd mechanical twang to it. He stepped off of the railing and jumped down to where she was. From the glare of the car headlights, she now saw him in perfect detail. "I'm a monster."
Her voice was hoarse from shouting and she stopped breathing so hard, thankful that he had come down. She smiled sadly. "You don't look so bad to me."
He stared back at her, but she couldn't tell what he was thinking. He had very few facial expressions.
"You are not lying..." More of a statement then a question, but she shook her head nonetheless.
A small white buggy landed about six yards behind them, breaking their gaze. She looked back at him desperately. "Get in!"
After what looked like a quick spout of hesitation he did so, opening her door as gently as possible and squeezing to fit himself inside. Meanwhile, Cordelia ran to the other side, jumping into the driver's seat and turning the key. The engine revved up and she floored the gas pedal.
The bridge flew past in a haze of light as they neared the center of town. Once they had almost reached then end, suspension cables trembling around them, Cordelia looked over at him and smiled hopefully. "I- my name's Cordel-"
Lightning struck.
"I would speed up if I were you."
"Wha-" She looked through the windshield, searching for whatever he saw. Suddenly another bolt of lightning lit up the sky and revealed to her what he'd seen. A tanker was heading straight for them, falling on it's side. "OH SHIT!"
She swerved to avoid on oncoming car and pressed her foot down until the gas pedal would go no further. The red and gray tanker grew closer and closer until they barely skimmed underneath it as it hit. She could feel the back of her car leave the ground (followed shortly by the front) as the tanker exploded. Cordelia had never experienced anything like it before.
A few seconds later they slammed back to the earth, the fire on the tires and back of her car quickly being doused out by their landing in a large puddle. The vehicle swerved, Cordy gritting her teeth as she pressed down on the gas pedal trying to regain control. Once that had been accomplished, she slowly began to ease back on the brakes. Behind them they could hear the bridge caving in on itself as the weight limit was finally pushed over the top. She sat breathlessly, not knowing what to say.
"I'm Lawrence. I'm sorry if I frightened you back there."
She shook her head. "I've seen worse...why were you going to do it?"
"What kind of a life can I lead? Look at me, I'm not the most catching figure in the world."
"There are other demons existing out there-"
"Is that what I am? A demon?"
She blushed furiously, realizing she'd insulted him. "I-I didn't mean it like that!"
He sighed. "It's alright. I am what I am."
"Look, all I was trying to say is that there are groups of beings that will except you. You just have to find them."
He stared back at her and looked as though he was smiling after a while, but said nothing. "You look as though you aren't very happy yourself."
"...I'm not. Everything just seems to be falling apart."
"I'm listening."
She hit the brakes suddenly; screeching to a halt in the rain (which took them a bit further on the slick road) as a RAV4 fell to the earth about eight yards ahead. Six more cars hit the street at the same time, causing the road to become an obstacle course as more fallen vehicles filled the streets.
"You don't want to hear my story."
"I've got nothing else to do…"
She smiled and nodded, dodging another car and always moving forward.
* * * * *
"Where are you going now? You can't leave in this mess!"
"Xander I'll be safer out there-"
"Bullshit, what kind of logic is that?"
Xander chased Anya threw the attic as she packed up a few more things. He wasn't stopping her yet, and while he really was tired of the relationship he still cared for her a lot, and was certainly not going to let her run outside.
"Ah, found it!" She pulled out a long robe from a box, shoved it into her bag and started for the door to downstairs. Xander grabbed her arm, holding her back.
"God, Anya wait. Just listen to me! The safest place to be is inside the-"
A large truck cut off his remark as it burst through the roof and flooring of the attic only a few feet from them. It continued it's decent downwards until landing somewhere below in the basement.
Both of them breathed deeply, staring at the hole the truck had created.
"You ready to go outside yet?"
He grabbed her arm again, this time pulling her with him. "Yeah, let's get the hell out of here."
As he ran down the stairs pulling Anya with him, a jeep blew through the wall behind them. The steps forced the jeep to arc at a forty-five degree angle, and it pulled plaster and wood with it due to the close quarters. Seeing this, Xander grabbed on Anya and rammed himself through the banister, crashing to the living room floor below as the jeep rushed past, slamming through the wall and disappearing again outside of the house.
Xander sighed, having landed atop her, and smelled her hair for the briefest second before she forced him off. He stood and pulled her up with him. She shuffled uncomfortably as they made their way towards the door. "Thanks."
He smiled and nodded, then pulled open the door, rushing out with her into the stormy night.
* * * * *
Giles threw the last shirt into his suitcase and zipped it up around all three edges as quickly as he could. After Ethan had left he'd gone back to the house and had moved the last boxes full of his materials into his car and had driven it to the airport. It would also be flown along with his things. Then he'd taken the bus back. He'd only left the day-to-day necessities for the suitcase packing.
Hefting it up, he began breathing deeply; trying to keep calm despite the fact that heavy machinery was falling and blowing up all around him. His kitchen had already been obliterated. After a few more breaths he ran for the door, opening and closing it (quietly, for some reason he couldn't understand) before running out into the street as fast as he could go with the added weight of the case.
Giles had hoped that Buffy would've met him at his house despite what they had planned, and he'd waited an extra five minutes just in case, but once he figured she wasn't going to show he'd decided it was too much of a risk to wait any longer.
He stopped in his tracks. She was coming, he knew it. He'd probably leave and just miss her. He ran back to the house as the cars struck the earth near him, and in the distance he could hear hundreds more. Once at the door he pulled out a pen and a sticky pad from within his pocket, then quickly scribbled out a note to her before sticking it to the door, picking up the suitcase and running for dear life.
Even if she didn't come, it made him feel all the better to have done that.
* * * * *
Darla cried out in frustration. Everyone she tried to stop was either moving by to fast or just plain would not stop. Once Angel had left her in the rain she tried to find him to no avail. She had a feeling she'd see him again, but it was crazy to stay within Sunnydale while this was going on. While running though the woods towards the main street she's seen that at the edge of town the cars weren't falling. This had filled her with hope that if she could just get picked up then she could get out before Sunnydale was completely destroyed.
Twin lights speared through the darkness in front of her, causing Darla to gasp and run into the middle of the street, foregoing the thumb technique for the standing in the middle of the road one. The small Geo did stop, and within the driver honked and started to roll down his window. A bald man with glasses and puckered lips stuck his head out.
"Get in, the doors unl-"
The Porsche cut off anything else he might of said when it landed front-first onto his own, blowing Darla off her feet as she screamed. The man disappeared beneath the bent metal but it didn't take much of her imagination to consider what he looked like now, crushed inside the heap of burning destruction. As she was standing another car barreled into the bald man's, sending it (the totaled Porsche still sticking out) screaming towards her. She jumped as all three cars flew over either edge of the ravine, exploding below.
Crying, Darla again stood up not noticing yet another car screeching to a halt to her left. A raven-haired girl called out to her.
"Get in, the door's unlocked."
She felt an odd sense of doom as she nodded, seeing a figure inside the passenger seat pointing for her to get in the back. She did so, quickly closing the door behind her.
"Oh my god, thank you."
The girl nodded as she sped back up, expertly weaving in between both the falling cars and the ones with actual drivers, also trying to get out.
She suddenly realized the passenger was trying to hunker down and failing miserably. She was about to tap him in the shoulder and ask him what was wrong when she actually got a good look at the back of him and smiled curiously. He was a demon, but that was all she could tell. He looked almost like a new-age Frankenstein.
She decided to ignore him for now and continued on trying to catch her breath as the entered the intersection near the end of town. The driver was forced to slow down for a moment to try and get past all of the other wrecks. After this they'd be home free. Suddenly the girl's face hit her as familiar.
The car was picking up speed and they were at sixty again when she'd asked, almost at the end of the intersection.
"Hey, don't I know y-"
But she was unable to finish as they slammed into an oncoming car.
* * * * *
Joyce was screaming right along with the little boy as every vehicle hit the ground, debris flying all around and people screaming everywhere. They held on tight to each other as she tried her best to navigate through the wreckage. Once they got to where they were going she'd make a left towards the bus stop. She was completely aware that the actual fastest way out would be the exact opposite of the direction she was going, but it's not as if the cars would just stop falling once the reached the edge of town.
After a little while they calmed down a bit, seeing as how she was doing pretty well at not getting hit. Also, except for those falling around her the road was fairly clear since no one was going in the direction she was.
"T-there's something I want to tell you!"
She was surprised to hear his voice beneath her.
"What is it?"
"I'm…I'm not human."
Joyce nodded, not sure of what to make of this.
"I can handle that."
"Don't you want to know what I am?"
"...Well, you're incredibly pale and you aren't breathing. I-I think I have a pretty good idea."
Silence as she neared their destination.
"Why haven't you tried to kill me yet?"
"I don't really want to."
She smiled and, on impulse kissed the top of his wet head.
"Will you ever?"
"I'm not sure."
She nodded. "I can handle that too. I kind of need this."
"...So do I."
She laughed a little and hugged him closer to her.
"Good. Well than once we get out of this I'll get some tinted windows."
He smiled along with her. Neither was sure of what to think of this relationship or how it would turn out. But he didn't want to kill her and she wanted him around. It seemed as though it could've worked out, had it not been for the car going the wrong way that they slammed directly into.
* * * * *
Ethan smiled at her as she awoke, blinking her eyes a bit.
"Thank god, you're alive."
She groaned slightly and held a hand to her head.
"What happened?"
"I'm not sure. I'm guessing he knocked you out when you were unlocking the trunk. Thank you for trying that, by the way."
She stared back at him.
"Hmm, you're welcome. Why can I see you?"
"Wha- oh, I've got my lighter on."
"Turn it off, please."
He paused for a moment, then nodded and clasped the Zippo shut. "Sorry, I didn't realize I looked that bad."
She gave a tired laugh and placed her hand on his chest. "No-no, it was just hurting my eyes. Don't get me wrong, you look like you were just hit in the head with a brick a few dozen times-"
Ethan laughed in spite of the pain he felt from his wounds.
"-but with a little healing up you wouldn't be too bad to look at."
He smiled in the darkness. "That's good to hear."
"You're English."
He paused, befuddled by the statement. "As are you."
"No, it's just that I ran into someone today who doesn't go for our kind."
Ethan chuckled again, more grimly this time. "You're not alone in that respect."
"You sound spiteful at that. Jilted?"
He nodded, feeling silly for doing so. "Yes."
She leaned in closer. "Well, you're not the only one."
They were quiet for a moment, listening to noises outside. "What's you're name?"
"Ethan. Ethan Rayne."
"I'm guessing that you have no idea what's going on outside, yes?"
"Not the slightest."
More silence. "My name's Olivia. And just wondering, what were you doing with the light on?"
"...Watching you."
She grinned. "Is that all?"
"Yes, really. I didn't have much time or space to do anything else."
She laughed and reached a hand up cupping his cheek, ignoring the small amounts of blood she felt there. Putting their heads together, he stopped her momentarily.
"I lost some teeth when he attacked me...are you sure-"
She cut him off, kissing him, tasting the blood from his lips. Not an ugly taste. Metallic, but not bad. She kissed him again, opening her mouth further and putting it atop his, which he willingly opened. The amount of blood inside his mouth did surprise her, but more than anything it turned her on further. As an explosion particularly near the car rocked it, he reached a hand down and ran it up the length of her thigh.
She rubbed further against him and sighed as he touched her.
"Mmf!"
They broke apart breathing heavily.
"What, what's the matter?"
"Something on you- it bit me."
She giggled a bit. "Turn your lighter on."
He did so, revealing a small pool of blood on his forefinger. He also held a bright red rose, perfect in shape and form, completely unblemished. Ethan's brows furrowed curiously.
"How the hell?"
But Olivia knew it for what it was. "Ethan, how do you like it?" She asked quickly, nuzzling into him.
"Uh, rough." He said in a joking voice, obviously not sure what she meant.
"Good…" She smiled deviously, then used her hand to once again shutter the flame, throwing them back into darkness.
...........
Anyone who might've taken the time to stop and watch the patrol car parked at the edge of Brown Street and Elm would probably have been shocked to notice that it was quickly rocking back and forth. But of course, no one did.
* * * * *
"It's alright miss, really. You're going to be okay!" Parker yelled to the woman over the roar of the chopper, then watched as she and three others were whisked off into the flying machine, which took a second to get off the ground, then flew off beyond the street, dodging the falling cars in the sky. He stood there a moment longer; squinting with three other volunteers by his side holding their hands to their foreheads so the rain wouldn't get in their eyes.
Someone tapped him on the shoulder. "Hey man, come on. We gotta long night ahead of us."
He nodded to Jeffrey; his partner he'd met up with earlier today before he'd taken the Crisis Control van out to rescue Faith. Once he'd left the airport he'd been called directly to pick Jeffrey up and get over to the first accident scene. So far they'd been to five. Most of the people were already dead, but they had (with the help of other Sunnydale Crisis Volunteers) been able to help out some.
They hopped back into the van, Parker in the back, closing the doors and Jeff in the front. Jeffrey started up the van as Parker set up in the back. The radio crackled to life, reporting that another chopper was down. Jeffrey sighed and got out his headset, pulling it over his ears.
"Hey man, tell me when they call us again, right?"
Parker nodded and pulled out his notebook, jotting down what had happened to him since picking Jeffrey up. But his mind was really still on Faith, imagining what she might look like without the jail-suit or the black leather he'd given her to change into at the airport. He doubted he'd ever know. But he would like to think that one day they'd meet again.
...........
"Hey, Jeff!" Parker reached over and flicked the other man's ear, dragging him out of the Eurhythmics.
"What is it?"
"Got a big one. Three streets over, 34 and Maple."
"Next to the bus stop?"
"Yeah."
He nodded, turning a corner a bit too fast. "Let's boogie."
* * * * *
Buffy,
Just in case. Northwest and Maple.
I'll be there. Not much time left.
She smiled as she pocketed the note. Giles' door and front wall looked to be the only thing left. Not just of his house, but of any of the houses. She picked her bag back up and cursed herself for not running faster. She'd really wanted to meet him at his house. Back in the street, she stopped for a moment to point out to herself where the bus stop would be. Suddenly her senses kicked in and she jumped about six feet to the left, then rolled as a minivan and a Cadillac blew into the ground like bombs. Sighing, she got up and started jogging again, this time a bit more wary of her surroundings.
* * * * *
"Where do we go from here?"
"We should be safe where we are, let's just stay here for now."
Xander and Anya lied in the filthy rain-filled ditch, their gazes locked upwards for any more cars falling their way.
"No, I meant where do you and I go now? In our lives."
He looked over at her before glancing back up. "I don't know. You're the only person I know that put out a hit on me and still left me caring about you."
She smiled. "I-I do care about you Xander, I'm just tired of you. I want something new."
He nodded. "I kinda figured that out. So instead of dump me you try and knock me off and take my money."
"It really wasn't personal."
He began to chuckle but quickly stopped. "Green one, you're side." They swam as quickly as they could towards the other side of the bank. The green Explorer splashed into the watery ditch sending a large wave over to them.
...........
"Xander, what time is it?"
"Hang on… 11:43."
"Xander, I'm late. I have to go."
He nodded, helping to push her out of the ditch before climbing up himself. She looked around for a second before spotting her drenched bag and picking it up. Turning to him, she was unsure of what to do. He reached out and pulled her to him, embracing her as tightly as he could. Anya smiled.
"I feel like one day I'll see you again."
He nodded. "I feel that way too."
She stepped back from him, staring at him a moment longer before turning around and running beyond his vision. Then a whooshing sound overcame him and after a loud boom, Xander Harris heard and saw only darkness.
* * * * *
"Hey man, there they are!" Parker shouted, pointing to the wreckage of a red convertible and a black Jeep. Unfortunately, by now the entire intersection was blocked by the rubble and debris left by many of the other cars. They'd have to get to the survivors (if there were any) by foot.
"Okay, I'm stopping." Jeffrey pulled over and signaled base. Meanwhile Parker opened the back doors and pulled out a makeshift stretcher. They were only a volunteer service, and as that was they had no real means to do very much good other than getting people out of dire situations. If they needed IV's or other such necessities, they'd have to wait.
"No good man, all of the choppers are being used."
"Shit. Alright, any of the other units around?"
"Closest is in a residential area, they'll be there awhile."
Parker nodded, jumping out and signaling the other man to help him with the stretcher.
"What's going on here?" Parker and Jeffrey looked up at the voice, watching as some guy ran up to them from out of the darkness. He was wearing a long jacket over some Hawaiian clothing. He was completely soaked, just like everything else around them.
"We've gotta get to that wreck over there," Parker pointed to which one and the guy followed his finger, "Check for survivors."
"How do you know there are any?"
"Patrolling helicopters check out for movement. They send us, we help the people until the actual cavalry comes."
He nodded. "Need any help?"
"As much as we can get," Jeffrey stated as he held Parker get the stretcher out."
"Okay, what do I do?"
* * * * *
Willow gasped as Tara came alive in her arms. Her eyes fluttered open and her pulse jumped up, almost scaring her with it's intensity.
"W-Willow?"
She laughed and cried at the same time, reaching down and pressing her lips to Tara's. Tara tried to catch her breath, more than a little surprised by the action, but was soon returning the favor.
They were huddled in the corner of Xander's basement, which is where Willow had moved them after she'd grabbed Tara and jumped, narrowly missing the truck that had come crashing down onto the couch. Once in place again she'd waited for the spell to take it's mark. Then she'd felt Xander's soul being transferred and had been waiting for Tara to come back to hers, completing the process. One day she'd have to pay for what she'd done to Xander, unless he could somehow find his own way back, in which case everyone would be happy and none would be the wiser.
And while that's what she hoped he could do, she wasn't of that much faith.
"I'm sorry, Willow, I should of told you everything! From the start I knew I should've, but I was just so scared that you wouldn't want-"
Willow kissed her again, loving the way her energy flowed throughout. It made Willow feel so...alive! She then pressed a finger to her lips to indicate silence.
"I understand. It's all right. It was my fault for not seeing it in the first place." Tara shook her head and began to voice her disagreement as to who the fault should be laid upon when Willow placed one hand on the girl's waist and the other behind her head, effectively quieting her.
"Tara, I only want to know one thing."
Tara, almost in a trance and purring slightly from Willow's hand massaging her, nodded. "Anything…"
"When you did that spell, who did you raise?"
"A.D.A.M. I was going to curse him with a soul when I saw he already had one. He'll be gone by 11:50 tonight. Ethan needed him to cross paths with Buffy to keep her occupied while he had to meet some people."
Willow was shocked. Her touch on Tara had cause the girl's words to flow abruptly, but that wasn't what she'd been so surprised by.
"Ethan? Ethan Rayne?"
Tara nodded again, writhing slightly for Willow to continue; her eyes closed. "He was a friend of my mothers. When she died he helped me out, flew me to America."
Willow shook her head in confusion, removing her hands. "But I told you about Ethan. All the bad things he'd done."
Tara opened her eyes, nodding sadly. "I know. I didn't want to tell you I knew him because I thought you may not trust me."
She sat up then, gazing into Willow's eyes. "Willow, I would never ever put you or any of your friends in danger purposefully. I made sure that Ethan's intentions were good before I performed the spell." She choked up a bit then and reached out for her. "I love you Willow, I couldn't live without you."
This time Willow let her make contact, Tara lightly running her hands through her hair and down her cheek. She nodded slowly.
"I know. I love you too. I just...I don't want anymore secrets between us."
Tara shook her head forcefully, tears running down her face. "I promise Willow, I'll never keep anything from you again."
She nodded and smiled before beginning to cry again herself. She finally had her back. But Tara still looked a little timid. "What is it?"
"So you…you still want to be with me?"
Willow laughed and hugged her tightly. Tara cried harder in happiness and hugged her back, smelling her hair and running kisses down the length of her neck.
A crash from elsewhere broke them out their embrace, and for the first time Tara noticed that the stairs were out. "Uh, Willow? Why is there a truck in Xander's basement?"
"They're everywhere. Falling all around town, right out of the sky."
"How are we suppose to get out of here?"
Smiling, she lightly cupped Tara's cheek and turned it to the right and upwards, showing her the small windows at the top of Xander's basement.
"Oh…"
...........
Willow pulled Tara out, having her wiggle a bit to finally free herself from inside the house. Once out Willow pulled her up, helping to brush her off as she continued relating what happened to her after the girl's death.
"So you thought I had caused the cars?"
Willow shook her head. "I wasn't sure. But there's still something I don't understand. You came into the dorm room without any harmful intent. Why was the board spinning?"
"...Was it spinning before I got there?"
"A little, yes. Then it just kept getting faster."
Tara looked her in the eyes. "You were kind of angry at me."
Willow nodded, her face going red as she kissed Tara on the forehead. "I'm sorry I hurt you. I didn't know what I was doing, honestly; but I'm not a demon."
Tara met her gaze again, obviously trying to convey something to her. "I think a part of you may be. Running in your blood stream. You may have a bit of me inside of you."
Willow frowned. "How-…" Suddenly she looked up, finally having it dawn on her. "Oh…"
"I hope you don't-"
She shook her head quickly. "No-no, really. I kind of like it."
Tara smiled. "Good…"
Something else presented itself to Willow then. "Oh Tara! Your stutter; it's gone!"
The other girl looked up, realizing that she was right. "C'mon, let's get to the bus stop. It looks like the storm is dying down a bit."
"But I don't have any money. Not even a dime."
Tara smiled mischievously.
* * * * *
Buffy entered the intersection, looking around to once again examine her position.
*
Lawrence and Darla were busy pulling an unconscious Cordelia out of her overturned Corvette when the dark figure entered the intersection.
*
Joyce was slowly coming back to reality as Colin struggled to unbuckle her seatbelt and pull her free. Her ankle was broken and the bone of her elbow was showing, bleeding in large amounts. The jeep, after being hit had turned on it's side.
*
Angel and Parker were breathing sighs of relief. The cars didn't seem to be falling down as much anymore, though every once in a while an explosion could be heard, often followed by screams, alarms and sirens.
"This way, we can get to them through here!" Jeffrey shouted, pointing to an area in between two cars, light fires burning inside.
They nodded and rolled the stretcher off in that direction. Angel didn't know what they were going to do if there was more than one survivor, because they only had one stretcher. Perhaps the two volunteers only used it as a temporary safety until the actual ambulance crew arrived. Then again, the hooks on the edges suggested to him that maybe it was used to carry the person up in a helicopter. In any case, he was sure a solution would present itself in one form or another.
And best of all, helping these guys took his mind off of Buffy, if only for a small amount of time.
*
"I know what I'll do," said Darla in earnest, "I'll take him to Venezuela! I know he always wanted to go there...do you think that would work?"
Lawrence shrugged; his red eye (no longer displaying a digital readout of the area surrounding him) was beginning to get on his nerves. Once daylight hit he was hoping that it would stop glowing. "He sounds as though he still loves another."
She sighed, frustrated. "Yeah, but maybe, if I could just get him to stop thinking about her... he loved me once…"
Lawrence kneeled down to Cordelia, examining the cut on her forehead. It wasn't that bad. She'd wake up with a serious headache, but not much more. He tried to smile, glad that she wasn't hurt badly.
Suddenly his eye caught something to the left, shifting in the darkness beyond.
*
"Look, there are the survivors!"
"Alright, you, Hawaii man. You go check those people by the Corvette. Parker, could you go over to the car on it's side? I'm gonna try and get contact with base, get a crew over here."
Parker and Angel nodded at Jeffrey before splitting up in their separate directions.
*
"Look out!" Lawrence rushed over and pushed Darla out of the way as the blonde-haired girl appeared, jumping onto half a car that had exploded on impact. She stared at them in surprise, recognition hitting all three of their faces. Lawrence knew her from somewhere but he just couldn't place her.
Darla knew. "Buffy…" She whispered backing away slightly.
"A.D.A.M. and…Darla? What the hell is this?"
The name struck Lawrence speechless, memories flooding back. He remembered what had happened to him after the operation. At least part of it anyway. It all came back in a flash and he didn't have time to fully understand and recuperate when she struck.
Foregoing any sort of witty comments or threats, Buffy flipped off the car, landing directly in front of A.D.A.M., brandishing her axe. This was going to take awhile if she remembered correctly.
Seeing Buffy wielding the axe in the air, swinging down towards his chest, Darla rushed her, jumping on her back. Not exactly shocked, Buffy let the axe fall and started bucking wildly to get the other woman off.
Darla pulled her hair and hit her back, trying desperately to get Buffy to fall. Buffy stopped moving; amazed at what she was feeling. Was this really Darla? She wouldn't even leave bruises from the pain she was inflicting; though after one particularly rough tug Buffy did flip her off of her back. Angel had come back to earth; he had escaped hell because of love. Could Darla have done the same, but somehow have become human?
Angel rammed into Darla, throwing her off her feet and bringing them both to the ground, dangerously close to one of the many fires raging in the streets. The flames licked at both of them, scaring Angel enough to back away and off Darla for a moment. Long enough for her to elbow him in the stomach then punch him in the face, as he lay stunned.
Buffy shook her head. She was definitely human, as was Angel. They were fighting as though one single fist from Buffy would KO the whole thing. But this seemed more a lover's quarrel then anything else, so she let them be; making sure neither really hurt the other as she once again started towards A.D.A.M.
*
Cordelia shook her head a little, feeling woozy and lightheaded. The entire world was spinning, making her decide that lying down was the best decision for now. But as her vision came into focus she blinked a few times; someone was staring at her. Lawrence…
He opened his mouth to say something, but a blur rushed past her eyes and he was gone. Gone, gone away, flying towards not, for every summer slut there is a…is a winter tw… Cordelia decided to close her eyes for just a little longer. The last thing she saw before falling back into sleep was what she thought might be Buffy, bringing an axe up and down repeatedly over a large form…
*
Parker pulled the pale child from the wreckage, trying not to take notice of how odd it looked. But why was the kid only covered in a rough-looking cloth and nothing else? Well, he reasoned, maybe she'd found him in the storm. That still didn't explain much, but Parker wasn't about to start asking questions.
He took a deep breath and dipped his body inwards, inside of the car and towards the unconscious woman. Using his knees as leverage on the head of the passenger seat, Parker hooked his hands into the crook of her right arm, noticing in satisfaction that the kid had already unbuckled her. He yanked her arm up, lifting her out of the seat. Damn! She was heavier than he'd expected. He shifted a bit, stopping when he heard the sound of groaning metal.
The car moved, making his innards feel like ice. If it rolled right now… he didn't have much time to think, as the car did just that.
*
Lawrence, tried to scream but couldn't. The girl was tearing him apart. But oddly, he hadn't felt any pain until this point. She was desperately hacking at his chest, completely oblivious to the fact that he wasn't hitting back. He'd tried to many times, only in self-defense. But oddly enough, something held him from doing so. Some sort of power kept him from stopping her assault.
He could feel his life force ebbing away. He wasn't sure if this was what he wanted, but it was what he was getting. As he died, Lawrence remembered something he had craved for at some point. He had wanted one of two things. Life…or non-existence. He had gotten life. It seemed like a cheat in his soul, like he'd only been given a limited amount of time to start again, but in a sense he was given what he'd hoped for.
Maybe he could've made it. Maybe he could have worked out some sort of life where he would've been happy. His head fully of possibilities, Lawrence did know one thing for certain. This was no time to be thinking of maybes. But…maybe one day he'd be given another chance. Or maybe he'd simply fail to exist. And as Buffy finally grasped his power source, and as the time became 11:50, his link to the world faded out.
And Lawrence knew his fate…
*
Buffy stood, brushing herself off. She hadn't expected him to disappear. This was all pushing her over the edge. She didn't know what the hell was going on! People she'd killed years ago were appearing before her now. She huffed and picked up her handbag; about to leave the intersection when her slayer sense made her take a stake out from underneath the flap of her bag.
*
Colin just couldn't resist. He was the Anointed One after all, destined to rid the world of the likes of Buffy Summers. He'd been surprised when the car had turned over, and had been stooping down to help the man when he'd caught sight of her. Hunched over something that quickly melted into nothing, it made him blink in confusion.
At the moment forgetting his newfound maternal friend and the savior who'd pulled him out of the wreckage, Colin had jumped onto the now upturned bottom of the car and was watching the blonde girl. Taking the whooshing sound in his ears for some of internal signal he hopped off and took a running jump at Buffy Summers.
*
Buffy turned and almost yelped as she saw the figure flying at her through the night sky, but was even more surprised when the convertible smashed down onto him, probably smearing him into the earth. She stood there, stunned. I guess he should've looked "-before he leapt." She voiced rest of the thought, smiling.
But as she turned around she heard the explosion of glass. Glancing back, her eyes widened. "How the hell?"
He grinned at her, sliding out of the broken and flattened windshield, a large portion of his scalp now exposed. "I never did like the top down, but consider me a changed man."
Then the six-year-old leapt onto her, teeth bared viciously.
*
"That's it! If you want to spend the rest of your life pitying yourself over some slutty bitch, BE MY GUEST!"
Darla stared down at him. She'd won that fight, as was proven by the sight of her standing over him. But it wasn't a victory she was happy about.
"But guess, asshole; I'm not sticking around here, waiting on you to get over it!"
She moved back and allowed Angel to stumble up. His lip was bleeding, his Hawaiian shirt torn, jacket missing and hair ruffled. He looked at her for a moment, then reached out to touch her.
"No!" She slapped his hand away, then his face. He stared at her, shocked. "You had your chance, now deal with the consequences."
She turned on her heel then, limping slightly and still freaked from being inside a car that had flipped over; leaving him there. She wished she could say it felt good. She wished she could say that it was what she wanted to do. But wishes were for dreamers, and Darla was wide-awake, both feet on the ground. Until Angel realized what was going on and what wasn't going to happen, he wasn't worth the trouble of chasing. She'd let him come to her, if he ever did.
Shocked and not sure of what was happening, Angel forgot about his surroundings and left in search of a very needed necessity.
*
Buffy threw a fake punch left then kicked out, landing a solid blow on Colin's chest. But it barely even fazed him as he grabbed for her other leg that was still on the ground. Having been taken by this once tonight she hopped back, dropping to her hands and knees and spun, hoping to sweep him down.
He jumped though, anticipating her attack and landing and a blue Contra that was overturned. He'd realized why he'd been brought back to life. After The Slayer had closed Sunnydale's hellmouth someone must have pulled some strings to get him out. This was what he was meant to do. Kill the slayer.
Buffy couldn't make sense of any of this. Darla a human, A.D.A.M. a ghost and a bad fighter at that, and the Anointed One, who had all but disappeared a few years ago. Some sort of convergence must've been caused when she'd closed the hellmouth. She wondered if that also had anything to do with the car rain.
Buffy slid over to him and jumped adjacent his position, swing forth a palm against his jaw. He blocked it and head-butted her in the stomach, taking a bit of the wind out of her breath. When she bent forward he swung both arms over her head like a club bringing them down on the back of her skull. She fell forward off the car and to the street below with Colin jumping after.
Taking him by surprise, Buffy lifted out the stake, rolled over when she landed and put it in the air, waiting for the kid to impale himself on it. He did so with a wet thunk, but Buffy's aim had been off slightly and as a result it sunk into the lower portion of his chest. Seeing this, Colin grinned and gnashed his teeth into soft side of her neck. She gasped, feeling the sensation of blood flowing rapidly out of her, and it took every ounce of strength she had to push him off of.
He growled landing on his feet; his face still vamped out with her blood on his teeth. Buffy jumped up, righting herself, one hand on her neck and the other still holding the stake she'd pulled out from him. He laughed hollowly, kicking out and landing a good hit on her hand. The stake flew off, leaving Buffy surprised and backing up.
"It's time, Slayer." He whispered; his normally pale skin flushed slightly from all of the blood.
Before she could move he punched her twice in the face, then kicked up and locked his tiny thighs around her neck, causing her to gasp and fall back. Deciding that she was too big a risk to kill by feeding, The Anointed One picked up a shard of glass from off the pavement and forced it down at her face. She grabbed his wrists before he could cut anymore then her cheek and started pushing back, her strength failing her as it became a duel of who had the most energy remaining to direct the glass towards their opponent. Needless to say, if this continued much longer Buffy would lose.
*
Parker yelped in pain, turning over to give himself more room to extract the woman from the Jeep's metal grasp. He'd gotten more than a few cuts when the car had fallen over, and the one on his shoulder was giving him the most pain, bleeding freely. Once the kid had deserted them it had taken a second to get out, but the hardest part had been not breaking the ladies neck at her precarious position.
"Uhn…" He almost jumped, surprised at her awakening. With a few more quick pulls he was rewarded with the ripping of cloth and the release of the vehicles hold on her. Once completely free of it he laid her on the ground and pushed away her hair. Awestruck, he examined her. She must have been in her early to mid forties, and she was truly beautiful. He smiled; glad he'd had the chance to help her out.
"Hey, Parker!" He glanced up, seeing Jeffrey a few yards away, waving. He waved back in response, signaling that he'd gotten the woman out. Jeff gave a thumbs-up and started walking over with the stretcher when the whir of fast-moving blades overtook any of the other sounds in the night air. They both looked up to see what looked like three helicopters flying towards them.
*
A large floodlight shined directly in his eyes, breaking Colin's focus on his strength. Taking this opportunity Buffy hit the glass shard, breaking it into two halves, then slipped out from underneath the boy. He snarled and leapt towards her, but she dodged out of the way. Still holding the two halves of glass, Colin threw one at Buffy. Confused at this move, the slayer caught it deftly. But with her attention now off him, Colin jumped at Buffy, leaping from a car that had sunk a large hole into the ground, the edge of the last glass shard gleaming sharply in the light.
*
Parker suddenly realized that the third object was not a helicopter, as it was falling too fast and didn't have any lights on. He tried to signal for the lower of the two choppers to move, but of course he couldn't be seen that well.
The large station wagon smashed into the fin of the 'copter, throwing it off balance and heading in a tail-dive straight for the ground. Jeffrey looked up at the explosion, then began running when he realized the car was head straight for them. He waved his hands quickly for Parker to move; his screams drowned out from the noise above. Parker grabbed the woman, still not conscious enough to move, and began dragging her to safety.
The station wagon had been falling on a direct downward course when it had hit the helicopter's tail, and was now falling at more of an angle because of it. Jeffrey tried to jump out of the way before it landed but was too late. It smashed him down, smearing what remained of blood and bones along the ground as it raced towards Parker and the woman he was desperately lifting over his shoulder. He lunged out of the way as the wagon passed mere inches from them, crashing into what was left of her jeep, exploding in a ball of fire.
Parker breathed deeply as he checked her pulse. Still going, still beating.
*
Buffy was blindsided by the jump, but for once Colin had misjudged his placing. He'd leave a long gash across her shoulder blades that would no doubt last awhile, and had ruined her shirt completely; but her neck was still unscathed, save for the two small holes he'd left on it. Colin slammed home into a wall of cars that had been made earlier, then stood up and caught his breath.
A loud roar filled the air and Buffy rolled to the side, narrowly missing being run over by the falling helicopter. It continued on it's path, sparks flying along the pavement as it went straight into a bewildered Colin. The force blew the chopper up in a blaze, but surprisingly unaltered the wall of metal and rubber. The fire was so large that Buffy, who had by now regained her footing, couldn't see what had become of the Anointed One.
Not one to leave loose ends, she approached the fallen metal bird. The heat of the flames washed over her, and she put up a hand to block them off slightly. Not that it did much good, but she could see a little clearer. It took her a moment to find him, but there he was. Fried to a crisp, howling silently as he detracted himself from the lower portion of his body, which had been pierced in the landing. The bodies of the pilot and someone else also burned, but she tried not to notice them too much as she watched him finally tear himself free and begin climbing up the scarred blue metal.
Two burnt hands reached out, followed by a hairless ball of black and red tissue, two sunken and very white eyes in sharp contrast. She grimaced at the sight. She had to admit that he had persistence in completing his goals. Which made it all the more enjoyable waiting for him to reach a certain point. He did so, sticking his head up between two flaming propellers. Buffy wasted no time in reaching up and grabbing one of the steel, sharp rods in her hands and spinning it. She felt very little resistance as his head separated from the lower part of his neck, rolling down the metal and stopping at her feet just before turning into dust.
She sighed, rubbing her neck and spotting her bag next to the convertible that had first taken out the kid. Buffy then examined one of the half-melted street signs, stating which direction she should go to get to the bus stop. She left the fiery, blood-filled intersection as quickly as she could.
* * * * *
Anya laughed when she saw him, jogging over to him and jumping uncharacteristically into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist. He gasped and chuckled before taking his mouth to hers, kissing her until she had to pull back for breath. Spike let her go back to the ground and kissed her again.
"Everything ready, love?"
She nodded. "Xander's done with, the demon I hired took him out."
His eyes narrowed. "And that's it, you got the money?"
Anya shook her head sadly, glancing up at him to see if he was buying it. "Only a little. Apparently, it doesn't go to me."
"See, that's what I was trying to tell you, but you wouldn't listen."
"What was this surprise you called me about?" She asked, trying to change the subject.
"Huh? Oh yeah, some unfriendly git kicked me at Willy's today, and I broke his neck when he laughed at me."
Her eyes widened. "Someone kicked you?"
"Yeah, for no reason." He scratched his head. "I don't remember it that well, but I fell of the stool and the next thing I know he's there laughing at me."
She giggled nervously, punching him gently in the stomach. "Oh well, he probably mistook you for someone else. It could happen to anyone!"
Spike doubled over from her punch, breathing heavily. "Ow!"
"Oh god, I'm sorry! What's wrong!"
He shook his head. "Nothing, nothing. I ran into the slayer today is all. Had it out with the little bitch."
"Did you kill her?"
"No, I decided I'd let her live a bit longer. You know, let the humiliation of being beaten sink in before I cinch the flame."
She nodded in understanding, excited that he'd bought her story. "So, I did my part of the deal. Let's go kill your old girlfriend, what do you say?"
"Dru?.... How much money you got?"
She looked through her purse, counting the bills quickly. "Um, twenty, thirty, f-forty-five dollars!"
He rolled his eyes. "Alright, we'll probably have to kill someone for some real cash, but it should at least get us out of this flaming shit-hole. Let's catch the bus."
She nodded, kissing him and wrapping an arm around his neck. "Carry me?"
"Sure pet."
* * * * *
Giles let out a breath of sadness as the bus turned the corner, coming up along what remained of Maple street as quickly as possible. He grinned then hopefully, watching as a figure came running out between a grouping of trees towards the stop. Another person followed that one, and finally two more, hand-in-hand came down the terrace at the edge of town.
The bus came to a stop in front of him, opening it's doors in an electronic gasp. The driver inside looked down at him with slightly crazed eyes. "Rough night, eh?"
Giles nodded. "I'm surprised you're even running the route."
The driver shrugged. "Got nothing better to do."
Giles frowned. The guy looked a little off his rocker, but if it meant deciding between never leaving Sunnydale or taking the possibility of a crazy driver, Giles would take the driver.
His heart fell when he looked back to discover that the figure coming towards the bus had been Spike, with Anya not far behind. Once he got there, Spike nodded at him and made sure the driver stayed where he was. Anya reached up; a deep frown set on her face as she hit Spike on his shoulder.
"I thought we were going to miss the ride!"
"You didn't have to drop me!"
Behind them he smiled (if sadly) to see that the other two were Willow and Tara.
"Hi Giles."
"Willow, Tara."
As all but he boarded the bus, paying the fares, Giles wondered whether or not Buffy had even considered coming with him. She'd probably met up with Angel and had dumped Riley right off the bat. No, he didn't want to believe that. She meant too much to him. He hefted the suitcase up and boarded the bus, his heart fallen. For whatever reason and through whatever steps taken, she'd found something better than him.
Or…was she even alive? He wasn't positive if he'd ever know for sure, or even if he wanted to. But the doors were closing behind him, and Buffy wasn't there…
* * * * *
Wesley pressed a hand to the side of his temple, trying desperately to overcome a monstrosity of a hangover. He'd woken up in the dumpster and had sneaked back into his hotel to pack up as quickly as possible. As it was he'd had to take out two men posing as bellhops, stuffing them in a neighboring man's apartment before weaseling his way back out and hot-wiring the black Volkswagen he was currently situated in.
He still had a few days until Lewis was to take his final bow. Apparently someone had leaked out that he was after the businessman, which explained all the attention he'd been getting lately. But the worst part was that upon inspection of his own car, he'd found a bomb that looked like it had more European (possibly even German) markings on it; meaning that one or more of Brohiemer's men was out to get him. He'd have to confront the man about it, but for now he'd complete the job Brohiemer had hired him for.
He just wished he knew who he could trust and who he couldn't.
*
Up above, high in the clouds of Mahjal's bright sky, a single object was emitted. By now many were aware of the frightening occurrences going on this very second in the America's. A single town being destroyed by hundreds of thousands of cars, trucks, vans, and even semi's and tankers; all falling from out of nowhere in the night sky.
Very few would ever learn of this incident. A large van, once white but now black, it's back welded shut; fell from what seemed a normal, low-lying cloud. If any did learn of this, and if they knew of certain facts, such as who was in the Volkswagen at the time and who the previous owner of the van had been, they might've considered it a sick sort of poetic justice.
But as fate would have it, none did nor ever would put two and two together.
The cheese will often be expelled in parts, but rarely does it leave the
system entirely...pieces may be found in plastic packaging, though none
shall recieve the holy block. Or, if it's Swiss, holey.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
Okay, that's all for this part. Hope you enjoyed reading it as much
as I enjoyed writing it. Look soon for the final part, aptly titled Cheese:
An Experiment in Fate (Part 4- Epilogue). I'm planning on it being very
short, just sort of a wrap-up of all the remaining stories. Until then,
I think 'Whose Line' is on. Hurry, or else you'll miss it!
