CHAPTER FIFTY-SIX
Weathering the Attack
The Fire demons started their attack at two o'clock in the morning that night. They were able to break through the barrier that they'd set up the night before pretty quickly. This time they concentrated their numbers in the first wave from the cellar so that they couldn't be turned back so easily. Still, the ray gun took most of the fight out of them. They tried to rush Buffy to capture the gun. But it was pointless. The Shadows stopped the bulk of the attack. Xander and Buffy only had to deal with two or three that slipped through.
Poor William was totally worthless. He didn't know he could fight and he couldn't shoot the crossbow. He was terrified by the rush of demons in every direction. He spent most of his time cowering.
When it was over, Xander pulled Buffy aside and said, "You know, I never thought I'd say this, but I'm really missing Spike here. I was so wrong to suggest bringing William."
Both Buffy and Xander turned for a moment to watch William as he tried to fade into the background. He was thoroughly ashamed of being so useless. He wanted to be strong and decisive, to be a man of action. But he just didn't have the ability. He wished he could jump into battle like Xander. They were disappointed in him. He could tell. His mother had always been such a quiet sufferer. She didn't like to communicate her feelings, she just expected you know what they were. As a result, over the years William had learned to read people well. He knew he'd let his new friends down. And somehow he could sense that as terrifying as all this was, they were doing something important. But alas, he was not a man of strength, no matter what Buffy said.
In truth, he was opposed to fisticuffs mostly because he couldn't do them. He knew he was a lousy poet. But he was still a better writer than he was a fighter. He couldn't even fight back with words when it was necessary. Part of him was just cowardly and there was an end to it. He wanted to be more, he really did. But he just couldn't be.
But Buffy . . . he could see that she had all the strength that he lacked. Her ability to make decisions, to lead, the abnormal power she seemed to have. He was both amazed and in awe of her. She was . . . magnificent.
As the Scoobies made their way back to Xander's car, they walked slowly for it was now very late. That is, everybody but Willow walked slowly. She was anxious to get home to find out about Tara.
"Come on, you guys," Willow chided. "Get a move on! We don't have all night."
The others exchanged glances but said nothing. They let her pull ahead of them and mostly just looked down at their feet as they walked. They didn't notice immediately when Willow stopped to aim her crossbow at a Fire demon who was loitering near Xander's car. After their tired eyes told their tired brains what was going on, they moved quickly to Willow's side. Xander and Anya held up their crossbows and stood on either side of Buffy. Buffy held her ray gun in readiness. Jonathan and William sort of hid behind them.
"What do you want?" Buffy demanded.
"This is Ledic," Willow said. "That's as far as we've gotten.
"Ledic," Buffy repeated. "And to what do we owe this pleasure?"
"You are the Slayer." Ledic said in a voice that had just the hint of a hiss. "You came to our tunnels. You help the Shadows."
"What's it to ya?"
"I want to help you."
"What?"
"I want to help you in your fight against my people and their masters."
"Masters? So the Fire demons are working for someone." Buffy said.
"Yes. My people have dreams of glory because of their newfound powers. But they come at the cost of our freedom. I don't want my people to work as servants for anyone."
"So you're a turncoat."
"No," Ledic said, holding his orange and gray head highly. "I am a freedom fighter. I come to you in order to set my people free."
"And who is it that you're trying to be free from?"
"The leader of their group is a man called Doc."
"Doc!" Xander exclaimed. "He was the guy who cut up Dawn last year so that Glory could open that portal to the different dimensions. He threw Spike off the tower."
"Yeah," Buffy said. "And I tossed him off. I guess the guy just doesn't kill easy."
"Tara and I saw a body fall from the tower," Willow said. "But we didn't get a good look at him. We were kinda busy with the rest of the battle. Especially me."
"So, what's the big plan?" Buffy asked.
"I don't know all of it, except that it's supposed to take place on the feast of Imbolc."
"The feast of Im-who?" Buffy asked.
"Imbolc," Willow said. "It marks sort of the end of winter and the return of the sun. It's usually celebrated with huge blazes and all kinds of fire."
"Oh, great! More fire," Buffy said. "That explains why they'd want a group of Fire demons to help."
"But the feast in itself doesn't have any human sacrifices or call for anything bad in itself," Willow said.
"Least I'm glad to hear that," Buffy said.
"Do you think our friend Doc is planning on trying to bring Glory back?" Willow asked.
"It's possible," Buffy said. "I had about all I can take of that skanky ho last year. I don't need to see her again."
"Neither do I," Willow agreed.
"So, what are you proposing?" Buffy asked Ledic.
"That I will keep you advised of any attacks or plans, so you will be forewarned."
"And how do you propose that we stay in contact?"
Ledic pointed to an alleyway across the street. You or one of your people can meet me there. I think we will not fight again until Monday. Being beaten two days in a row has depressed my people. They were beginning to think they were invulnerable. They want Doc to give them greater powers. But he has not been down here in some time. It seems he has more important business elsewhere. His followers, meanwhile, are preparing the warehouse that you and the vampire came to for the Imbolc celebration."
"Tell me," Willow said. "Do they have a lot of witches? Human ones?"
"Yes," Ledic answered. "But not all of them are human."
"Though evidently the ones who gave you your extra fire powers are," Willow pointed out.
"I do not know about that. But yes, there are many humans. And a few others as well. Doc is not human."
"All right," Buffy said. "We'll meet you here again on Monday."
As the Scoobies drove back uptown, Buffy asked what they all thought of this Ledic.
"I don't trust him," Xander said.
"Neither do I," Willow said. "But I think we have to see where it goes."
"I think he seemed in earnest," Anya said. "I've met a few Fire demons over the last thousand years. And he's more like the run of the mill kind. Very proper, very determined to be free and apart from all other species. I wonder if this group Doc has culled his Fire demons from various tribes over time. You know, luring over the malcontents with promises of new power."
"Sounds possible," Buffy said. "Jonathan?"
"Who me?"
"Yes you, Shrimp-guy," Xander said.
"Me? I think I wanna move out of state. Who is this Glory you were all talking about?"
"A hell god," Anya answered off-handedly.
"Oh, is that all?" Jonathan said.
"Yeah," Willow said. "But we beat her. Or anyway, Buffy did."
"William?" Buffy coaxed. "Do you have any opinions?"
There was a long silence from the back of the car. "No," came the tiny answer.
Buffy sighed to herself. She could have used a good dose of Spike's irritating opinions at that point. Working with demons against demons, and dealing with demon turncoats was not something she had a lot of experience in. Anya was well versed in demonology. But tactical stuff was Spike's specialty. She would have liked to have heard what he thought about Ledic's trustworthiness. She had no doubt that if Spike had been there, he would have doused the guy with bravado and tested him a bit. And anyway, it had been his idea to help the Shadows in the first place!
- - - - - - - - - -
Willow led the way up the front walk as they approached Buffy's. Buffy came next, followed well behind by William. He was feeling more and more ineffectual. Hell gods . . . demons. What was he doing with these people?
As they came in the house, the first thing they saw was Zachary and Dawn sitting on the livingroom couch. Dawn had wads of tissues in her hands, with several others scattered over her lap. Her eyes were red and puffed up to twice their size from crying. As soon as she saw them, she started crying again.
"What's wrong," Buffy asked.
Willow said nothing. Somehow she already knew.
Dawn tried to speak but no words could get past her sobs.
"Miss Summers," Zachary said rising to his feet. He couldn't bring himself to address himself to Willow. "It's Tara."
Willow's breathing sped up and her eyes widened. She reached out for someone to cling to. William stepped to her side and supported her. Demons and weapons he couldn't handle. But emotion, that was something he understood.
"The police were here earlier, just when we got back," Zachary continued. "Tara was evidently the victim of a mugging. She was stabbed several times and her money was taken. But they left her empty wallet. She had her student ID in it and the police were able to reach someone at the college. They checked their records and told them that Willow was listed as Tara's official next of kin."
He stopped for a moment to see if anyone would ask any questions. But no one could. Dawn was still sobbing on the couch. Willow buried her fingers deeply into William's arms. Tears were brimming over and falling silently down her cheeks. Buffy's eyes were tearing as well. She sniffed to keep them back.
"They want you to come tomorrow to identify her. I've got the address."
"Noooo!" Willow cried out. It was a long pitiable sound, full of all the heartbreak and loss, of one soul torn from another. She sank to her knees and huddled to the floor. William went down with her, wrapping his arms around her to give her what comfort he could.
Weathering the Attack
The Fire demons started their attack at two o'clock in the morning that night. They were able to break through the barrier that they'd set up the night before pretty quickly. This time they concentrated their numbers in the first wave from the cellar so that they couldn't be turned back so easily. Still, the ray gun took most of the fight out of them. They tried to rush Buffy to capture the gun. But it was pointless. The Shadows stopped the bulk of the attack. Xander and Buffy only had to deal with two or three that slipped through.
Poor William was totally worthless. He didn't know he could fight and he couldn't shoot the crossbow. He was terrified by the rush of demons in every direction. He spent most of his time cowering.
When it was over, Xander pulled Buffy aside and said, "You know, I never thought I'd say this, but I'm really missing Spike here. I was so wrong to suggest bringing William."
Both Buffy and Xander turned for a moment to watch William as he tried to fade into the background. He was thoroughly ashamed of being so useless. He wanted to be strong and decisive, to be a man of action. But he just didn't have the ability. He wished he could jump into battle like Xander. They were disappointed in him. He could tell. His mother had always been such a quiet sufferer. She didn't like to communicate her feelings, she just expected you know what they were. As a result, over the years William had learned to read people well. He knew he'd let his new friends down. And somehow he could sense that as terrifying as all this was, they were doing something important. But alas, he was not a man of strength, no matter what Buffy said.
In truth, he was opposed to fisticuffs mostly because he couldn't do them. He knew he was a lousy poet. But he was still a better writer than he was a fighter. He couldn't even fight back with words when it was necessary. Part of him was just cowardly and there was an end to it. He wanted to be more, he really did. But he just couldn't be.
But Buffy . . . he could see that she had all the strength that he lacked. Her ability to make decisions, to lead, the abnormal power she seemed to have. He was both amazed and in awe of her. She was . . . magnificent.
As the Scoobies made their way back to Xander's car, they walked slowly for it was now very late. That is, everybody but Willow walked slowly. She was anxious to get home to find out about Tara.
"Come on, you guys," Willow chided. "Get a move on! We don't have all night."
The others exchanged glances but said nothing. They let her pull ahead of them and mostly just looked down at their feet as they walked. They didn't notice immediately when Willow stopped to aim her crossbow at a Fire demon who was loitering near Xander's car. After their tired eyes told their tired brains what was going on, they moved quickly to Willow's side. Xander and Anya held up their crossbows and stood on either side of Buffy. Buffy held her ray gun in readiness. Jonathan and William sort of hid behind them.
"What do you want?" Buffy demanded.
"This is Ledic," Willow said. "That's as far as we've gotten.
"Ledic," Buffy repeated. "And to what do we owe this pleasure?"
"You are the Slayer." Ledic said in a voice that had just the hint of a hiss. "You came to our tunnels. You help the Shadows."
"What's it to ya?"
"I want to help you."
"What?"
"I want to help you in your fight against my people and their masters."
"Masters? So the Fire demons are working for someone." Buffy said.
"Yes. My people have dreams of glory because of their newfound powers. But they come at the cost of our freedom. I don't want my people to work as servants for anyone."
"So you're a turncoat."
"No," Ledic said, holding his orange and gray head highly. "I am a freedom fighter. I come to you in order to set my people free."
"And who is it that you're trying to be free from?"
"The leader of their group is a man called Doc."
"Doc!" Xander exclaimed. "He was the guy who cut up Dawn last year so that Glory could open that portal to the different dimensions. He threw Spike off the tower."
"Yeah," Buffy said. "And I tossed him off. I guess the guy just doesn't kill easy."
"Tara and I saw a body fall from the tower," Willow said. "But we didn't get a good look at him. We were kinda busy with the rest of the battle. Especially me."
"So, what's the big plan?" Buffy asked.
"I don't know all of it, except that it's supposed to take place on the feast of Imbolc."
"The feast of Im-who?" Buffy asked.
"Imbolc," Willow said. "It marks sort of the end of winter and the return of the sun. It's usually celebrated with huge blazes and all kinds of fire."
"Oh, great! More fire," Buffy said. "That explains why they'd want a group of Fire demons to help."
"But the feast in itself doesn't have any human sacrifices or call for anything bad in itself," Willow said.
"Least I'm glad to hear that," Buffy said.
"Do you think our friend Doc is planning on trying to bring Glory back?" Willow asked.
"It's possible," Buffy said. "I had about all I can take of that skanky ho last year. I don't need to see her again."
"Neither do I," Willow agreed.
"So, what are you proposing?" Buffy asked Ledic.
"That I will keep you advised of any attacks or plans, so you will be forewarned."
"And how do you propose that we stay in contact?"
Ledic pointed to an alleyway across the street. You or one of your people can meet me there. I think we will not fight again until Monday. Being beaten two days in a row has depressed my people. They were beginning to think they were invulnerable. They want Doc to give them greater powers. But he has not been down here in some time. It seems he has more important business elsewhere. His followers, meanwhile, are preparing the warehouse that you and the vampire came to for the Imbolc celebration."
"Tell me," Willow said. "Do they have a lot of witches? Human ones?"
"Yes," Ledic answered. "But not all of them are human."
"Though evidently the ones who gave you your extra fire powers are," Willow pointed out.
"I do not know about that. But yes, there are many humans. And a few others as well. Doc is not human."
"All right," Buffy said. "We'll meet you here again on Monday."
As the Scoobies drove back uptown, Buffy asked what they all thought of this Ledic.
"I don't trust him," Xander said.
"Neither do I," Willow said. "But I think we have to see where it goes."
"I think he seemed in earnest," Anya said. "I've met a few Fire demons over the last thousand years. And he's more like the run of the mill kind. Very proper, very determined to be free and apart from all other species. I wonder if this group Doc has culled his Fire demons from various tribes over time. You know, luring over the malcontents with promises of new power."
"Sounds possible," Buffy said. "Jonathan?"
"Who me?"
"Yes you, Shrimp-guy," Xander said.
"Me? I think I wanna move out of state. Who is this Glory you were all talking about?"
"A hell god," Anya answered off-handedly.
"Oh, is that all?" Jonathan said.
"Yeah," Willow said. "But we beat her. Or anyway, Buffy did."
"William?" Buffy coaxed. "Do you have any opinions?"
There was a long silence from the back of the car. "No," came the tiny answer.
Buffy sighed to herself. She could have used a good dose of Spike's irritating opinions at that point. Working with demons against demons, and dealing with demon turncoats was not something she had a lot of experience in. Anya was well versed in demonology. But tactical stuff was Spike's specialty. She would have liked to have heard what he thought about Ledic's trustworthiness. She had no doubt that if Spike had been there, he would have doused the guy with bravado and tested him a bit. And anyway, it had been his idea to help the Shadows in the first place!
- - - - - - - - - -
Willow led the way up the front walk as they approached Buffy's. Buffy came next, followed well behind by William. He was feeling more and more ineffectual. Hell gods . . . demons. What was he doing with these people?
As they came in the house, the first thing they saw was Zachary and Dawn sitting on the livingroom couch. Dawn had wads of tissues in her hands, with several others scattered over her lap. Her eyes were red and puffed up to twice their size from crying. As soon as she saw them, she started crying again.
"What's wrong," Buffy asked.
Willow said nothing. Somehow she already knew.
Dawn tried to speak but no words could get past her sobs.
"Miss Summers," Zachary said rising to his feet. He couldn't bring himself to address himself to Willow. "It's Tara."
Willow's breathing sped up and her eyes widened. She reached out for someone to cling to. William stepped to her side and supported her. Demons and weapons he couldn't handle. But emotion, that was something he understood.
"The police were here earlier, just when we got back," Zachary continued. "Tara was evidently the victim of a mugging. She was stabbed several times and her money was taken. But they left her empty wallet. She had her student ID in it and the police were able to reach someone at the college. They checked their records and told them that Willow was listed as Tara's official next of kin."
He stopped for a moment to see if anyone would ask any questions. But no one could. Dawn was still sobbing on the couch. Willow buried her fingers deeply into William's arms. Tears were brimming over and falling silently down her cheeks. Buffy's eyes were tearing as well. She sniffed to keep them back.
"They want you to come tomorrow to identify her. I've got the address."
"Noooo!" Willow cried out. It was a long pitiable sound, full of all the heartbreak and loss, of one soul torn from another. She sank to her knees and huddled to the floor. William went down with her, wrapping his arms around her to give her what comfort he could.