Chapter 3
Spike sat in the motel room he was renting in San Diego, California. He was flipping channels, muttering under his breath about the "freakin' teletubbies" when he noticed something that caught his eyes. He flipped back to channel 13 and saw the words "Sunnydale, California riot!" at the bottom of the screen. He turned up the sound.
"I repeat, Sunnydale California is in a riot! Almost one hundred strangely clothed yet dangerous rioters have been counted. So far, riot teams from the local police and L.A. have done no good. Police suspect strong amounts of PCP and LSD are involved. Sunnydale is currently being evacuated. More on this story at ten..." the announcer was cut off by Spike shutting off the TV.
"Time to go check out the old hometown," Spike chuckled to himself, before leaving the room, getting on his motorbike, and roaring out of San Diego. He was on his way to Sunnydale...
---
Giles and Dawn headed towards the Bronze, which they expected would be empty for the moment. Giles parked and the two ran inside. As expected, it was empty. Giles got two sodas out of the counter for them to drink. They were going to stay there until they knew it was safe to go out.
---
Xander and Willow raced back down the stairs and out onto the street, still carrying their weapons. They headed towards the center of the town, where lots of the demon activity was going on. They staked a couple of vampires along the way, but when they got to the center of town, they saw nothing. They stood there, looking around. Nothing. No sound. Nothing.
"What's going on?" Xander wondered out loud.
"I don't know," Willow replied, even though she knew he wasn't really expecting her to know.
"Where are they?" Xander asked, noting that all the fires were still going on, even though the demons weren't there.
---
The Master smiled and laughed a demonic laugh. His nine remaining followers were ecstatic that he had been brought back from hell.
"Thank you, my followers," he began. "I am free again! Last time I was free, that Slayer killed me. Where is she now?"
One of the smaller vampires responded. "She's uh, she's, well, dead..."
"DEAD?" The Master screamed. The followers were worried that he was angry. He wasn't. "That's wonderful! No opposition then, I assume? Good. Well, I think it's time we bring the Old Ones back to this world. Won't be long before another Slayer shows up! Now...
Let's open that Hellmouth."
---
Giles poked his head out the door. An eery silence filled the air. "Dawn, come on." He urged. They went into the alley, expecting some vampires or some demons. Nothing. At all.
They walked onto the street. Nobody was there. "What the..." Dawn began.
They stood there for 10 minutes looking around. Then, the ground began to rumble. "Dawn, get down!" Giles screamed. It seemed like a regular earthquake. He had seen these before in Sunnydale. But the timing of this...something was wrong.
The earthquake went on for about 5 minutes, then stopped. Giles breathed a sigh of relief. Until he heard the scream. The deadly, ear-piercing scream he had had nightmares about since a year after he became Buffy's Watcher. Dawn didn't recognize it, but he did.
"Dawn! Go find Willow and Xander! Now!" Giles screamed before taking off, full speed, towards the ruins of old Sunnydale High. It had been destroyed about four years ago, when to kill a pure demon (The Mayor) they had to blow it up at Graduation. It had been quite the battle. But what none of the students (who had helped in the fight) except for Buffy, Xander, Willow, Oz, and Cordelia knew was that the Hellmouth was right on top of the library. Right on top. And the first thing to come out of it, both times it had been temporarily opened during the seven years of his in Sunnydale, was a hideous multiple headed snake monster. It scared him. And now, the Hellmouth was opened. He didn't know who did it, but it had been done.
Dawn ran the other way, screaming "Xander! Willow!" and looking for them in the seemingly-deserted town.
---
The Master stood on a pile of boxes in front of a hundred demons and nearly two hundred vampires, also known as Sunnydale's current demon population. One of his followers was a dabller in Black Arts, and had transported them here to be gathered under the Master. Of course, the Master was still going to open the Hellmouth. He now had an army to fight with him though. They were prepared to head out and assist the demons that would leave the Hellmouth after it was opened.
And he knew it was. He had opened it before, once, before Buffy killed him. He had been trapped underground in 1937, stuck in a church buried by a great earthquake. A magical force kept him underground, but when he killed Buffy (drowning her, Xander later used CPR to revive her) he was set free. He had temporarily opened the Hellmouth, but Buffy had returned and killed him. But she was dead now. He was unstoppable.
He had sent three of his most faithful followers to open the Hellmouth. Of course they had died to open it, but he didn't care. And with the scream he heard and the new power he felt, he knew it was working. He felt great. He sent his army out into the town, formalized, powerful. He would soon own the world. It was going to be great.
Of course, people would try to close the Hellmouth. Possibly some demon hunters, or whatnot. But it could be opened again. Quite easily. But it could also easily be closed. By killing the person who had power over it. And he himself, the Master, had the power over it. He stood, looking out onto the town through an open window, watching his forces. He closed his eyes, yet he could still see them. Making people leave their homes. Blowing things up. But he took his mind of that. He focused on the Hellmouth, using his power to make it expand. Slowly.
But surely. It was growing larger. Already, the first demon was beginning to climb out. He was making the Hellmouth grow larger, growing about an inch wider a minute. Soon enough, it would be large enough for all of hell to exit it within hours. A great plan. And this time, he would succeed.
SHWIP!
The Master broke his concentration and grabbed an arrow from hitting his heart just in time. Another milli-second and he would be dead. Someone was trying to kill him. He growled, and snapped his head downwards, looking at the person who was holding a crossbow and had launched the arrow. No. Not a person, exactly. Different.
"A werewolf?" The Master asked, surprised.
---
Xander and Willow heard some screams and whoops. They turned around and saw a huge wave of vampires approaching.
"Willow," Xander began. "I love..." he was cut off by the wave of vampires trampling them. Willow got carried up towards the front, while the vampires seemed the move away from Xander. He had a stake out and was just hitting whoever he could. Finally, the 'stampede seemed to be over'. Two vampires stayed behind, hoping to drain him.
Xander ducked a punch and kicked the other vampire in the gut. The first vampire grabbed him by the collar and went to bite him but Xander stuck the stake into the vampires heart. The vampire screamed and turned to dust. The other vampire jumped on his back and tried to twist his neck, but Xander bent over and sent the vampire tumbling forward. Xander swung the stake at the crouching vampire but the vampire ducked and tripped Xander.
The vampire stood over him and threw the stake away. Xander punched the vampire in the face and got to his feet. He punched the vampire again and it fell to its knees. Xander dived and grabbed the stake. The vampire charged at him but he was able to stake it through the heart. The vampire turned to dust. Xander put the stake back in his pocket and began searching for Willow.
He found her about 100 feet away from him, lying on the ground in pain. Her shirt was ripped, she was bleeding pretty bad. She had been trampled on noticably.
"Will!" Xander said, getting to his knees and helping her up. "Are you okay?"
She sighed and held her neck. "Yeah, I think so. Most of them didn't notice us, though. Strange. They had empty eyes. I don't think they knew what they were doing. I wonder where they're going..."
"Let's not worry about that, Will. We need to get you cleaned up. Lets head for the Bronze."
And they set out, trying to piece together yet another confusing piece of the puzzle.
---
Giles ran into the school, heading straight to where the library had been. He walked into the barren and dark room and his inner ear nearly split in pain. The three-headed snake demon was almost fully out of the Hellmouth and it was very joyful. It reared one head back and roared right before Giles charged at it. The demon wrapped a tendril around Giles' weapon, the troll hammer. It threw the hammer backwards and it was on top of a pile of rubble.
Giles ducked another tendril swing but was hit by another and sent hurtling backwards in the crumbling remains of a wall. The wall fell to bits over Giles, who had went head first into it. The demon roared even louder.
The demon finally got out of the Hellmouth. It was back on the mortal plane for the first time in a couple thousand years. It had almost 20 spider-like legs, and it leaped up to where the weak roof was. It was free! The demon screamed and the town seemed to stop for a few seconds. It then scurried off, leaving the next demons to be freed from hell.
Spike sat in the motel room he was renting in San Diego, California. He was flipping channels, muttering under his breath about the "freakin' teletubbies" when he noticed something that caught his eyes. He flipped back to channel 13 and saw the words "Sunnydale, California riot!" at the bottom of the screen. He turned up the sound.
"I repeat, Sunnydale California is in a riot! Almost one hundred strangely clothed yet dangerous rioters have been counted. So far, riot teams from the local police and L.A. have done no good. Police suspect strong amounts of PCP and LSD are involved. Sunnydale is currently being evacuated. More on this story at ten..." the announcer was cut off by Spike shutting off the TV.
"Time to go check out the old hometown," Spike chuckled to himself, before leaving the room, getting on his motorbike, and roaring out of San Diego. He was on his way to Sunnydale...
---
Giles and Dawn headed towards the Bronze, which they expected would be empty for the moment. Giles parked and the two ran inside. As expected, it was empty. Giles got two sodas out of the counter for them to drink. They were going to stay there until they knew it was safe to go out.
---
Xander and Willow raced back down the stairs and out onto the street, still carrying their weapons. They headed towards the center of the town, where lots of the demon activity was going on. They staked a couple of vampires along the way, but when they got to the center of town, they saw nothing. They stood there, looking around. Nothing. No sound. Nothing.
"What's going on?" Xander wondered out loud.
"I don't know," Willow replied, even though she knew he wasn't really expecting her to know.
"Where are they?" Xander asked, noting that all the fires were still going on, even though the demons weren't there.
---
The Master smiled and laughed a demonic laugh. His nine remaining followers were ecstatic that he had been brought back from hell.
"Thank you, my followers," he began. "I am free again! Last time I was free, that Slayer killed me. Where is she now?"
One of the smaller vampires responded. "She's uh, she's, well, dead..."
"DEAD?" The Master screamed. The followers were worried that he was angry. He wasn't. "That's wonderful! No opposition then, I assume? Good. Well, I think it's time we bring the Old Ones back to this world. Won't be long before another Slayer shows up! Now...
Let's open that Hellmouth."
---
Giles poked his head out the door. An eery silence filled the air. "Dawn, come on." He urged. They went into the alley, expecting some vampires or some demons. Nothing. At all.
They walked onto the street. Nobody was there. "What the..." Dawn began.
They stood there for 10 minutes looking around. Then, the ground began to rumble. "Dawn, get down!" Giles screamed. It seemed like a regular earthquake. He had seen these before in Sunnydale. But the timing of this...something was wrong.
The earthquake went on for about 5 minutes, then stopped. Giles breathed a sigh of relief. Until he heard the scream. The deadly, ear-piercing scream he had had nightmares about since a year after he became Buffy's Watcher. Dawn didn't recognize it, but he did.
"Dawn! Go find Willow and Xander! Now!" Giles screamed before taking off, full speed, towards the ruins of old Sunnydale High. It had been destroyed about four years ago, when to kill a pure demon (The Mayor) they had to blow it up at Graduation. It had been quite the battle. But what none of the students (who had helped in the fight) except for Buffy, Xander, Willow, Oz, and Cordelia knew was that the Hellmouth was right on top of the library. Right on top. And the first thing to come out of it, both times it had been temporarily opened during the seven years of his in Sunnydale, was a hideous multiple headed snake monster. It scared him. And now, the Hellmouth was opened. He didn't know who did it, but it had been done.
Dawn ran the other way, screaming "Xander! Willow!" and looking for them in the seemingly-deserted town.
---
The Master stood on a pile of boxes in front of a hundred demons and nearly two hundred vampires, also known as Sunnydale's current demon population. One of his followers was a dabller in Black Arts, and had transported them here to be gathered under the Master. Of course, the Master was still going to open the Hellmouth. He now had an army to fight with him though. They were prepared to head out and assist the demons that would leave the Hellmouth after it was opened.
And he knew it was. He had opened it before, once, before Buffy killed him. He had been trapped underground in 1937, stuck in a church buried by a great earthquake. A magical force kept him underground, but when he killed Buffy (drowning her, Xander later used CPR to revive her) he was set free. He had temporarily opened the Hellmouth, but Buffy had returned and killed him. But she was dead now. He was unstoppable.
He had sent three of his most faithful followers to open the Hellmouth. Of course they had died to open it, but he didn't care. And with the scream he heard and the new power he felt, he knew it was working. He felt great. He sent his army out into the town, formalized, powerful. He would soon own the world. It was going to be great.
Of course, people would try to close the Hellmouth. Possibly some demon hunters, or whatnot. But it could be opened again. Quite easily. But it could also easily be closed. By killing the person who had power over it. And he himself, the Master, had the power over it. He stood, looking out onto the town through an open window, watching his forces. He closed his eyes, yet he could still see them. Making people leave their homes. Blowing things up. But he took his mind of that. He focused on the Hellmouth, using his power to make it expand. Slowly.
But surely. It was growing larger. Already, the first demon was beginning to climb out. He was making the Hellmouth grow larger, growing about an inch wider a minute. Soon enough, it would be large enough for all of hell to exit it within hours. A great plan. And this time, he would succeed.
SHWIP!
The Master broke his concentration and grabbed an arrow from hitting his heart just in time. Another milli-second and he would be dead. Someone was trying to kill him. He growled, and snapped his head downwards, looking at the person who was holding a crossbow and had launched the arrow. No. Not a person, exactly. Different.
"A werewolf?" The Master asked, surprised.
---
Xander and Willow heard some screams and whoops. They turned around and saw a huge wave of vampires approaching.
"Willow," Xander began. "I love..." he was cut off by the wave of vampires trampling them. Willow got carried up towards the front, while the vampires seemed the move away from Xander. He had a stake out and was just hitting whoever he could. Finally, the 'stampede seemed to be over'. Two vampires stayed behind, hoping to drain him.
Xander ducked a punch and kicked the other vampire in the gut. The first vampire grabbed him by the collar and went to bite him but Xander stuck the stake into the vampires heart. The vampire screamed and turned to dust. The other vampire jumped on his back and tried to twist his neck, but Xander bent over and sent the vampire tumbling forward. Xander swung the stake at the crouching vampire but the vampire ducked and tripped Xander.
The vampire stood over him and threw the stake away. Xander punched the vampire in the face and got to his feet. He punched the vampire again and it fell to its knees. Xander dived and grabbed the stake. The vampire charged at him but he was able to stake it through the heart. The vampire turned to dust. Xander put the stake back in his pocket and began searching for Willow.
He found her about 100 feet away from him, lying on the ground in pain. Her shirt was ripped, she was bleeding pretty bad. She had been trampled on noticably.
"Will!" Xander said, getting to his knees and helping her up. "Are you okay?"
She sighed and held her neck. "Yeah, I think so. Most of them didn't notice us, though. Strange. They had empty eyes. I don't think they knew what they were doing. I wonder where they're going..."
"Let's not worry about that, Will. We need to get you cleaned up. Lets head for the Bronze."
And they set out, trying to piece together yet another confusing piece of the puzzle.
---
Giles ran into the school, heading straight to where the library had been. He walked into the barren and dark room and his inner ear nearly split in pain. The three-headed snake demon was almost fully out of the Hellmouth and it was very joyful. It reared one head back and roared right before Giles charged at it. The demon wrapped a tendril around Giles' weapon, the troll hammer. It threw the hammer backwards and it was on top of a pile of rubble.
Giles ducked another tendril swing but was hit by another and sent hurtling backwards in the crumbling remains of a wall. The wall fell to bits over Giles, who had went head first into it. The demon roared even louder.
The demon finally got out of the Hellmouth. It was back on the mortal plane for the first time in a couple thousand years. It had almost 20 spider-like legs, and it leaped up to where the weak roof was. It was free! The demon screamed and the town seemed to stop for a few seconds. It then scurried off, leaving the next demons to be freed from hell.