Chapter 5: The Most Dangerous Game

"Do you know why your sister didn't want to eat with us?" Buffy asked him at the dinner table.

"Could it be because he's a walking target?" Willow asked.

Buffy looked at her friend. Willow wasn't usually that blunt…or in this case, rude.

Marco intercepted and decoded the look like an NSA transmission. "Willow's right, actually. I told Cassie to leave. I would tell Willow and Tara to leave, too, but they could probably protect both of us."

"Hey, I could hold my own against her."

He nodded. "With Spike's help, and Cassie's help, and Tara's help, and my throwing knife into her leg didn't hurt either. Let's face it, even I'll admit she's a little more than my match, and I'll deny that under any future questioning."

Tara looked at Buffy. "Do you think Dawn will be alright with Anya and Xander?"

"Sure, she's survived there before, no reason why she can't now."

Spike crashed through the front door, barely remembering to open it, and fell to his knees in exhaustion. His duster was a little worn about his shoulders.

Willow rushed to his side and said, "You look like you've been hit by a bus. What happened?"

Spike looked up at her. "I was hit by a bus, and a minivan, and one of those extra-large things that get eight miles to the gallon."

"An SUV," Marco stated.  He slid away from the table and stood, walking over to Spike.  "Where's my sister?"

The vampire looked at Marco.  "Nuala followed us to the motel.  She took Cassie to my crypt.  She wants you, and the Slayer."

Marco nodded, and shrugged.  "You can tell her that she can meet me at that old mansion in the cemetery."

Spike slowly got to his feet.  "Don't you get it, mate?  She's going to kill 'er if you don't go where she says."

"In that case, she doesn't get her prize, now does she?  She'll get my sister, who she wasn't sent to kill." 

Spike stood toe to toe with Marco, glaring.  "What sort of inhuman monster are you?"

The vampire watched as the eyes of the creature before him changed.  "I'm a creature who wants to keep on living.  And if Nuala wants to die, she can kill my sister.  If she wants me to die, she can bloody well kill me where I want to die.  Tell her that, Spike.  And if she really wants to kill Cassie, let her."

Nuala had seated Cassie on the cement bier in the center of the upper level of the crypt as she waited for her prey. Cassie stared blankly ahead as Nuala paced up and down and back and forth.

The redheaded vampire soon wearied of the usual nighttime sounds and turned to the bait for her little trap. "You can talk now. I'm bored."

Cassie blinked, shaking her head to clear it. "Oh man, love to know how you pulled that off. On the other hand, no, I don't." She turned her eyes on her captor. "Please don't put me under again. I'd rather be silent under threat of death than under mind control. And granted, my brother's a big ol' pain in the ass, but he's not worth dying over, is he?"

The green eyes glared at her. "And what makes you think I'm the one that's going to die?"

Cassie shrugged. "You said clichés are clichés because they generally work. Marco's not one for falling into them as easily as you think."

Nuala stalked up to her like the predator she was and lightly raked her fingernails up Cassie's throat to drive her chin up. "And what kind of monster would he be if he allowed his family to be harmed?"

"He's not as unthinking a monster as you believe, bint."

Nuala whirled to see the black-clad vampire whose home she'd commandeered.

Spike ignored her for the moment, looking around her to see Cassie. "You okay, pet?"

Cassie gave him a tiny smile of reassurance and a nod.

"And what are you doing here, gelding?" Nuala snapped. "Where is he?"

"First, this is my home. Second—don't stake the messenger—but your local mark isn't all that eager to willingly come to his death like some hero from a bad romance novel."

Cassie allowed herself a grin. "Told you."

Nuala spared her a killer glance. "This is your death threat: Shut up."

Cassie clamped her lips shut, but she continued to smile slightly.

The redhead turned on Spike. "And you should watch your mouth about bad romance novels. I've read through your TV guide, and you don't want to hear my comments on your pysch profile. From all appearances, you're still a loser from the Victorian age, whining over lost love and still looking for it.  A little insecure, are you?"

"Yeah, whatever," Spike replied, letting his eyes drift to a particularly dusty spider web in the corner, but his sight was always on her; he was always bored with psychology, even when he and Dru were together. Besides, her analysis was a little too close to the bull's-eye, and he wasn't about to let on. "Any event, Marco'd really rather not come to you."  He sat down on a chair.  "In fact, if I were you—and I 'ave been—I wouldn't lay money on him comin' to you anyway…and I wouldn't eat the girl, either. He might get a li'l touchy if you do."

Nuala strode up to him and looked down.  "And what about you?"

Spike barked a short, sharp laugh. "What about me? You think that 'e's gonna give a damn about what 'appens t' me? Gawd, you really are Irish, aren't you?  Only one of them'd be crazy enough to think that. Frankly, I'd be just as happy if you get to kill at least one or two of them. It'd leave me with a little peace and quiet. 'Specially Marco. He's up at the mansion on Crawford Street.  Frankly, lady, you can have him."

Cassie watched him silently through his little nonchalant tirade, feeling tears beginning to gather behind her eyes. Spike wouldn't allow Buffy to die all over again, let alone allow Nuala to kill her. She had to believe he was just putting on a show for the assassin's benefit.

Spike could feel Cassie's emotions from his chair, her eyes on him. He had to give the impression that he didn't care, no matter how much it hurt. It was still up for grabs who he was hurting more, himself or Cassie. He was out of practice acting the Big Bad, and he hoped he was pulling it off.

Nuala looked at Spike for a moment, wondering whether or not to believe him, and in either case if she should kill him or not.  She nodded curtly, then blurred through the air, delivering a spin kick to his head.  He spun several times, then fell to the floor, comatose.

Later, Spike would open his eyes and mutter, "I'm startin' t' miss the Hell Bitch."

Nuala closed her eyes and searched for Marco throughout the house, using her mind to feel him out. 

Gotcha!

She glanced at Cassie.  "Follow."

Marco waited for Nuala to come to him.  He was in an ancient bathroom straight out of the 1920s, with a cast iron bathtub.  His eyes were closed, and he was deep in meditation.  He was dressed in a neat black turtleneck and pants—he could never abide jeans.  The darkness was so complete, his head looked as though it floated, detached from his body.  A slot was cut into the wooden door at eye level so he could see out into the hallway. 

He waited for the vampire, and hoped for death.

Nuala was on the second floor, wondering where everyone else was.  She had trouble believing that Marco would come here all alone.  She smiled at the arrogance of the trap. 

"Wait here."

Cassie stopped in the middle of the room.  It was a corner room of the building, so three of the walls had windows in them.  The fourth wall had no window, only the opening to the hallway and a closet.  Even in Cassie's frozen condition, she felt the room to be abnormally warm for a house with no heating.

Nuala walked the hallway of the second floor, smiling at Marco's games.  Each room she passed had been installed with a back draft.  She had learned about it through her PhD in physics, and a little through her chemistry…after all, after you've been around for a thousand years, you have to keep your mind sharp somehow.  The rooms had had fires started in each of them, but were oxygen deprived.  The fires burned out, but the heat remained.  The slightest wisp of air would result in an explosion of nothing but fire. 

The vampire stopped in front of the bathroom and turned.  She crouched a little to looked into the door, and there was Marco, ready for death.

Nuala stood and tilted to the side, curling one leg beneath her, ready to push her energy into one kick that would turn to door to shrapnel and kill the target easily. 

She kicked, and the door exploded. 

Outward.

Deadly splinters ripped into flesh, tore and shredded. 

Nuala was knocked backward by the explosion and slammed into the wall, her left side a mass of wood.  Her arm, leg, buttock, and parts of her back were pincushions.  She felt pain for the first time in years.  She looked up to see a disembodied head floating in the mist. 

Marco stood serenely in the doorframe, eyes peaceful.  He launched himself at her, kicking into the splinters, driving his fist down into her back.  She sprang away from him.  The push from her good leg sent her all the way down the hall, back the way she came.  With a pivot the speed of sound, she twirled, sending half the splinters from her leg into the hall toward Marco with the centrifugal force.  He dove back into the bathroom, giving Nuala time to pull out some of the pieces from her body.  The splinters Marco had kicked had been driven in too deep to be extracted now. 

Nuala grabbed Cassie and moved out of the hallway's line of sight.  She released Cassie from her mesmerized state and said, "Scream." 

"Fu—"

Nuala didn't need to hear the rest, and bit Cassie, who screamed in reflex.

Marco's eyes burned as he walked out of the bathroom with a crossbow.  He had taken out the door with nitroglycerin, and had hoped it would have slowed Nuala down more than it had. 

He walked into the room slowly, crossbow ahead of him. His sister was in his sights, Nuala holding her directly in front of her own body.

"Put down the bow, and she's out of here," she purred.

"Marco don't—"

Marco let his smile slide over his mouth, cutting his sister off.  "And I hate to sound cliché about all this, but I really must say you aren't in the situation that will allow me to believe you."

Nuala cocked a brow.  "Do you always use so many words?"

He shrugged.  "Part Irish… you know how it is."

She nodded.  "That I do.  So, how do you want to see this done?"

"Well, how about this: let my sister go, and you can try to turn me into a vampire.  Think about it, when was the last time someone's been this much trouble for you?"

Nuala's expression became thoughtful.  "The trouble is thinking of the first time."

Marco beamed.  "Exactly!  Now, you put Cassie down, I put this down, and we can have fun together, what do you say?"

Marco locked eyes with his sister, flickering them down. She followed his gaze until she saw his fingers spelling something in ASL.

K-n-e-e, o-n, then held out his thumb and first two fingers.

Her eyes flickered back up to his, understanding tingeing her small smile.

With that, Spike flew up the stairs, stopping at Marco's left side.  "Hold on, luv, the Big Bad's gonna—"

"Spike!" Marco cut him off. "I always thought you're name belonged to a dog."  He whirled on Spike.  "Play dead." Marco fired into his chest. "One." 

"Hey, bitch," Cassie said to the vampire holding her in a death grip, "I've something to say to you."

"And what would that be?" Nuala purred dangerously in her ear.

"Two," Marco murmured, firing into Spike's chest again.  The vampire looked down in shock as the force of the arrow at point blank knocked him out the window. 

"Pog mo thoin," Cassie spat.

Marco whirled.  "Three!"

With a lunge of strength, Cassie raked her foot down the vampire's leg and dislocated her kneecap, making her hunch forward far enough for Marco's last arrow to land in her shoulder. Cassie used the moment to whirl around quickly and backhand the redhead with her fist.

Nuala waved Cassie away into the wall, knocking her out.  Marco dropped the crossbow as Nuala turned on him, hands bare.  The redhead looked down at his side, cocking her brow.  There hung a cavalry sword, ready to be drawn. 

"That too?"

Marco glanced down, as though he hadn't remembered it there.  "I'm not going to use it.  You want it?"

Nuala shook her head.  "No thanks."

Marco shrugged and threw it off to the side in one smooth motion, the belt followed.  "I'd hate to put you at a disadvantage."

"Disadvantage?"

He slid into an easy combat stance, waiting.  "I'm already a genius, so you're no match for me."

"Listen, child, I'm a Ph.D. six times over. So we'll have no talk of you being smarter until you manage to finish me."

"Have at ye, then."

Nuala exploded at him, and he leapt backward, blocking blows, and striking at nerve points.  Her reach was as long as his, and he wanted to stay out of it.  She threw a right cross through a wall, and he had already ducked under it and kicked into her diaphragm and pushed off, back out of reach.  Nuala's body froze with the impact, and he swung once more, smashing his palm across her face.  He leapt back as she spun, sending a roundhouse punch to tear his head off; she missed by a hair as he leapt underneath it.  By the time he had grabbed her, Nuala's back was to him, and he secured a grip on her collar and belt. 

Marco lifted her off the floor and over his head.  He turned toward the closet and threw her, hoping the door would break and the back draft he had planted there would rip forth and through her.  The walk-in closet would hold enough force to rip through the both of them, but Marco no longer cared, as long as the vampire was dead. 

Nuala bounced off the wooden door and came right back at him.  He crouched as she flew overhead, and sprang into her stomach, grabbed her crotch and chest.  He charged at the door, slamming her against it, cursing it as the only thing in that house that held up. 

The vampire rolled from his grip and onto the floor, grabbing him in a bear hug.  Her green eyes glowed like crystals as she sank her teeth into the collar of his turtleneck.  Marco struggled, desperate for a stake.

Cassie's eyes opened slowly to the sounds of a struggle.  Her brother's breath came through clear and loud, while the grunts of Nuala acted as punctuations for his breathing.  Walls were broken, wood was slammed.  She looked up in time for the vampire to finally struggle away from Marco and grab him, holding him face to face with the ghastly visage of the vampire's almost mangled countenance. She grabbed her brother and bit into his neck. 

Cassie growled weakly and glanced over to a shiny bit of metal on the floor.

Nuala's teeth sent shocks of pain shooting through her head, and she ripped herself away from her victim, staggering into the middle of the room, a curved piece of wood in her mouth.

Marco straightened and smiled as he touched his ruined collar.  "Got something stuck in your teeth?  It's a wooden collar, soaked in holy water. Hope you don't mind."

Nuala growled and braced herself to tear Marco's throat out.  A fist connected with the wood, taking her canines out with it.  Her head snapped back as she rocked with the blow. 

"Like that, bitch?" Spike growled, punching her in her bad arm.  More pain ripped her mind, and she punched Spike with her palm, sending his nose into his brain.  Since brain damage had never stopped him before, he whirled with a flourish of his duster and whipped a foot past her face.  She grabbed him with her best hand and raised him over her head. 

"If you had just stayed out of the way, you might have lived.  Now you don't get that much." 

Nuala threw Spike deliberately against the wall, so hard that he broke it.

The window behind her smashed in and both of Buffy's feet crushed Nuala's side as the Slayer swung in on a rope from the roof, the only place the Slayer Vampire hadn't checked. Nuala rolled and came to her feet, her body on fire with the pain. 

"Spry little thing, aren't you?"

"You noticed that, did you?" Spike groaned as he made it to his feet. 

"And you're supposed to stay dead for once."

"So sue me, I missed," Marco's voice came from her side. The assassin glanced at him, seeing he held a stake in each hand, point up. She laughed and lunged. Marco sidestepped and rammed a stake into her brain. She hit the floor hard and slid into the wall. Without looking at him, Nuala threw the stake at him. Marco had ducked in anticipation of that. The stake ricocheted off the wall (breaking the wall) and into the back of Marco's skull. He fell over without a sound.

Nuala was back on her feet, woozy, and was launched upon by both Spike and Slayer. With her good arm, she held off Buffy's blows like Keanu Reeves at the end of The Matrix. With Spike, she could afford the damaged arm to take the beating. 

In the other wing facing the room, Willow waited, trying to target the sunlight rays again, not wanting to fry Spike. 

Buffy launched one kick at Nuala's back, which was effortlessly blocked, but the one she planned at the same time struck Nuala squarely at the back of the head, sending her face-forward into the wall. Without seeing, Nuala's bad arm ripped across Spike's throat, tearing it out, and delivered a backhand to his face so hard his neck broke. He fell to the ground, out cold again. 

Nuala turned on Buffy, who leapt back, trying to keep out of reach of her blows. The Slayer reached for a cross at her back.  She pulled it out and flashed it at Nuala. 

The vampire laughed.  "You think that's going to be any good against—"

Marco's cavalry sword ran through Nuala's side and pinned her to the wall.  Nuala looked down, grabbed Cassie by the collar and tossed her over Buffy's head, on the other side of the room. The vampire slid off the sword and was about to strike again when a searing pain ripped through her chest. 

Nuala looked down and saw a cross sticking out of her heart. 

"Now you get to die," Buffy said, standing back.  "Doesn't feel so great, huh?"

Nuala's knees wavered as she grasped for the cross, her hands and torso on fire. She slowed burned with agony. She staggered away from Buffy as the Slayer watched. Nuala looked at Cassie, then Marco behind her, stirring slightly, and then at the closet.

The vampire's eyes glowed. If she took out the closet door, the flames would ignite and possibly consume Cassie, which would prompt one of the two targets to save her, and die in the process.

The vampire charged the closet.

The room filled with fire. The windows blew out with the sudden pressure. A wall of flame blocked Cassie from the remaining three people in the room. 

"Cassie," Marco groaned as he stood.  "Fire."

Buffy held him back. "No, she's dead."

Marco turned his glare on her. "That didn't stop you, did it?"

With what strength he had, he punched Buffy across the face.

And then, Marco leapt through the fire.

He'd let it burn.