Protector of the Worlds

Chapter 4 Suzaku no Miko
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By. Diana Zhou

Author's Note: Anyone out of character is done so from an entirely artistic point of view.
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"Giles! Giles!" Willow shouted frantically as she and Angel sail through the Sunnydale High Library doors.

"Yes, yes Willow. You don't have to shout. I have perfectly functional eardrums. What happened? Where's Buffy and Xander? I thought the three of you went patrolling together." Giles steps outside from the back of the library stacks.

"There was this blue light and, and whoosh. Buffy and Xander just went poof!"

"Oh my. Disappeared you say? You better sit and calm down a bit and start from the beginning." The jumbled account Willow was trying to force out of her mouth just made Giles confused and worried. The words 'poof' and 'Buffy' in the same sentence does not bode well. He gently led the flustered girl toward a chair while Angel retrieved a cup of water.

"Here, drink this." Angel said gently. He handed Willow a cup of water hoping she will feel better and can tell the story from the beginning. After a few swallows, Willow calmed down enough to relate to Giles and Angel what went wrong with the patrol.

"Well, we were patrolling in the park on the west side of town. This vampire just jumps out from no where. It was all gurr. Buffy tried to stake him but he ran away before even putting up a fight. We all chased after him. But Buffy and Xander got to him first. When I got there, all I saw was this bright blue light around Buff and Xander. And
then, nothing. The light was so bright that I couldn't keep my eyes open. When I opened my eyes again, Buffy and Xander are all gone!"

"What happened to the vampire? Is he staked?" Giles asked worriedly.

Before Willow could try to answer, Angel volunteered his opinion on that subject. "I don't think so. There wasn't any ashes at the area Buffy and Xander disappeared. Which reminds me, I found this near the spot this vanished." Willow looks to Angel as he takes out a small paper volume from the inside of his black leather jacket. Curious at the appearance of a book at the scene of a battle, Giles winced in sympathy toward the abuse of that book.

"What is it?" Giles asks.

"It's a book Giles. You know, the things you are married to." Willow gently teased.

"I know it's a book, Willow" Giles retorts tartly. "I see that Xander's lack of wit is rubbing off on you. I hardly expected those kind of mindless comment from you. I just want to know why was this book there in the first place." Turning to Angel, "Did the book belong to the vampire? Do you know if that is the vampire you warned us about last night?"

"Sorry, Giles." Angel replies quietly, "I was walking near the park when I though I heard fighting. When I got there, the light show was just coming to a close. But I know this, the light came from the book. When the book closed by it self, the light went away. But for what it's worth, I think the vampire that made Buffy and Xander disappear is the one we are looking for, Shadow Snake."

After that stunning retelling and the last bit of information, Giles sat down in one of the chairs and began cleaning his glasses. The information overload caused a short but eloquent response from the British man, "oh, my." That was just too much information for one night. Willow sympathetically reached out a hand and patted him on the back murmuring "there, there."

The world is about to end, Giles thought despairingly. But this time, the Slayer is not here to stop it. In fact, the Slayer is MIA, missing in action. It seems no one in the world know where Buffy and Xander are except Buffy, Xander, and maybe the vampire wizard. But none of them are available to question. Hopefully the strange book Angel brought back could offer some answers. Now were is that darn Chinese dictionary? It's been ten years since he had to do extensive reading in Chinese. He is bound to be rusty.

******

"The book is called Universe of the Four Gods Sky and Earth" Giles related after looking over the title. There was a tickle at the back of his mind when he read that name. But the harder he tries to hold on to that thought, the further it fled.

Before Giles could peruse the thought further, Willow shyly offered to research the book and check for cross references in international library catalogs. She was sure that book would be at least mentioned in one library archive, it looks antique enough. Because she has already proven herself repeatedly in the past concerning her research abilities, Giles did not think twice to entrust her with the book. She can probably be quicker 'surfing' on that dreadful contraption call computer that looking up in the text volumes, Giles thought with a slight resentfully. While Angel has proven to be a wealth of information, Giles doubts Chinese is in his range of expertise.

Cordelia Chase chose that moment to sweep through the library doors. Her designer heels loudly clicking on the tiles of the floor. By the sound of the heels, she seemed to be annoyed. Not particularly new experience for Willow or Giles, but Angel might have a little problem being in a room with her for a prolonged period of time. Cordelia could be. . . intense, if a person does not meet her criteria of social acceptability. Giles often wonders why Cordelia bothers at all to be around. It really seems she dislikes spending time with the group. Yet, she keeps coming back. Though it's always good to have an extra hand to help with the research, the bickering between Xander and her were most often distracting and annoying. Now that Xander is not present to bicker with, Giles huffed a sign of relief. For the first time since the disappearance of Buffy and Xander, Giles is thankful they are gone.

Cordelia took a quick survey of the library. The noticeably absent Buffy and Xander caused one perfectly plucked eyebrow to rise. As much as Giles needs and wants a comic relief right now, he just doesn't have the patience for her remarks about the absent members. Before Cordelia could speak, Giles forestalled her questions by asking her to help Willow with the translation of the text. Reluctantly, the fashionable Miss. Chase walks toward the center table complaining about the injustice and slavery all the way. As she passes Angel's corner, she tosses her hair and stood taller with shoulders back. To Giles, who watched the whole proceeding with grim mystification, teenagers are more mystifying that the most archaic spells. Giles went back to his own research when Cordelia opened one of the tomes after Willow quietly filled her in on what transpired earlier that night.

After an hour of quiet research because Xander was not present to crack jokes, Willow suddenly exclaimed in glee "I found it! I found it! I know what happened to Buffy and Xander." That brought a floury of movement from the other occupants of the library.

"Where in the world are they?" Giles asked

Cordelia, in a very bored fashion, said "So you finally found those two losers."

Lastly, Angel asks in a shy hopeful manner "Is Buffy okay?"

Angel's statement caused a small inward smile within Willow. That statement showed how much Angel really felt about Buffy. As stoic as Angel pretended to be toward Buffy's advances, it was all just pretend. Hopefully, when Buffy and Xander returns, Angel could profess his feelings to Buffy. 'This is so romantic!'

Willow put away her matchmaker thoughts when Giles impatiently cleared his throat. "Well," she began, "I think the incantation Shadow Snake used was not a spell he conjured up. It was actually the opening spelling inscribed in the first page of this book."

"What?!" Giles and Angel chorused.

"When I translated the first page of the book, I noticed that several passages were similar to opening spells I've come across. Opening spells are spells designed to create portals to different dimensions, worlds or realities. It needs a physical anchor for the spell to work. The anchor works like a key. Only through a ritual could the key be activated. When it is activated, the portal will be created. Most of the time, the spell is anchored in a form of a small charm or jewelry. But this time, the book is the physical anchor for the spell. The book has the opening spell woven into the text. Here let me read it so you can better understand what I mean. . ."

******

'It's so warm.' Willow thought dreamily as she snuggles closer to Mr. Fluffy - her stuffed dog. 'Since when did Mr. Fluffy wear Channel #5?' Mr. Fluffy felt different. It was warm and harder. It seemed to have a breath! That realization jerked Willow awake from her groggy state of mind. Mr. Fluffy's pastel blue fur changed to dark chocolate brown mane. His white tummy turned into a golden Kelvin Cline original. The baby blue soles turned into a three inch stiletto. Mr. Fluffy turned into Cordelia Chase! That startling realization brought Willow wide awake. Cordelia, who woke up a few moments before, looked at Willow with her usual look of disdain.

As soon as Cordelia felt Willow was lucid enough to answer questions, they compared notes on their last memories before waking up in the middle of a prairie. Both of them remembered the excitement at the discovery of the opening spell. Both of them remembered Willow reading a translation of the first page of the book. Cordelia remembered looking down at the original trying to follow along as Willow read the translation. Next thing they remember were bright red lights flooding their vision and a sense of falling. Apparently, Willow and Cordelia just found out first hand how to activate the opening spell. Reading the first page of that book will activate the opening spell, regardless of language.