PART FIVE
"You know, you really should get yourself checked out by a professional," Cordelia pointed out as she finished bandaging Gunn's shoulder. "I mean, cuts, bruises, scratches -- these are things I can deal with. Bullet wounds? That's a little out of my league."
"You seem to be doing just fine," Gunn replied as he slowly flexed out his arm. "Besides, the bullet went clean through."
"Yeah, but it could still get infected, which always leads to the possibility of amputation..."
"I think I'll be checking myself into a hospital," Gunn stood, nodding his head.
"Works every time," Cordelia smiled to herself.
"Wesley, how are those translations coming along?" Angel reappeared in the room and walked over to Wesley, who was frantically working at translating what he could of the pieces of the scroll that were left behind.
"I'm not really sure..." Wesley trailed off as he turned his attention to yet another old reference book, apparently searching for something.
"We're still working on it," Fred supplied, seeing that Wesley had quickly become engrossed in whatever passage he was reading.
"Where's Willow?" Cordelia asked, coming to stand next to Angel.
"I just showed her to her room; she's unpacking a few things. She'll be right down."
"Did you find anything out?" Gunn joined the conversation.
Angel considered his words for a moment. He was still unsure how, or even if, Willow's recent experiences with magick abuse had any relation to Cordelia's visions, and he felt a bit awkward discussing the matter without her consent.
"Not really. Things in Sunnydale have been a bit rough recently, but I don't really think there's any direct connection to the visions."
"So then what do we do now?" Cordelia asked softly, worried for the redhead. Since Willow was the only person she had really kept in contact with in Sunnydale over the past couple of years, she found herself even more driven to help get to the bottom of things.
Willow watched from the top of the staircase as Angel and his friends engaged in a discussion about something. Most likely her. She couldn't help but note how at ease Angel seemed around everybody. He really had built something special here...
Sighing, Willow shook her head as she finally descended the steps. "Hey," she greeted a bit nervously. For the first time in a long time, she felt like an outsider.
"All settled in?" Angel asked.
"Yeah. This place is, well, wow," Willow waved her hands around, trying to express the grandeur of the building. "So, what's...going on?"
"Well, Wesley and Fred are working on those scrolls, trying to get some clue as to what information they hold--"
"--to try and find out why someone would want to steal them," Willow finished, nodding in understanding.
"Exactly."
"Well, do you have any idea who would want to steal the scrolls?" Willow questioned, trying to find some way to help. If she could find some way to be useful, maybe she wouldn't feel so out of place.
"Oh we know *exactly* who was behind this," Cordelia replied. She exchanged glances with Angel and Gunn, who seemed to agree with her.
"I don't see why we can't just corner that lawyer chic and take the scrolls back," Gunn offered, "she's gotta be the one who set this up."
"You're probably right," Angel nodded, "I'd just like to know what they're up to first."
"Well, only the scrolls are going to tell us that," Cordelia said.
"The scrolls..." Angel mused, "how, exactly, did they know where the scrolls were being kept?"
Both Wesley and Fred looked up at this statement, which seemed to have the entire group pondering.
"You know, I never considered that," Wesley stated.
"Well, it ain't like anyone from Wolfram and Hart was ever given an all access tour of the building," Gunn offered.
"No one that we know of," Wesley's face lit with realization.
"How else would they know exactly where to look?" Angel's expression indicated that he had come to the same conclusion as Wesley.
"So, what? You're saying someone snuck in here and mapped out the entire hotel?" Cordelia questioned. "That seems a bit time consuming if you ask me."
"Well, there were those few days where everyone was trapped in Pylea," Fred reminded them.
"Damn!" Gunn summed up the thoughts going through everyone's head.
"Well, there isn't anything that we can do about that situation right now," Wesley quickly took charge. "I think the thing for us to concentrate on at the moment is getting back the scrolls that were stolen."
"I'll get them back," Angel promised menacingly.
"Good. In the meantime, Fred and I will work on deciphering what we can here. Gunn, I think Cordelia was right. You should get your shoulder checked out. And Cordelia..." he trailed off as she saw Cordelia and Willow standing together. "There is still the issue of your vision."
"Willow and I are on it," Cordelia replied cheerily, draping an arm over Willow's shoulders.
Willow stiffened slightly at the contact, not used to being so friendly, at least in person, with the ex-cheerleader. Her mind was spinning with all the unfamiliar information that she had just been bombarded with. Lawyers? Wolfram and Hart? Pylea?
Her musings were cut short as Gunn announced that he was off to go see a doctor. Once he had left, Willow turned her attention to Cordelia, giving her a questioning look, as if asking what she was supposed to do now.
Cordelia, in turn, looked at Angel. Understanding the look, Angel shrugged as he spoke, "There really isn't much that we can do right now on that front."
"Well, I could help Wesley with the translations," Willow offered. "Research is at least *something* I know I can get right, and it seems more important at the moment."
"And I guess I'll go assess the damage to the storage room," Cordelia sighed resolutely, obviously getting tired of always having to clean up after the hotel was trashed.
Willow smiled slightly as she watched Cordelia stomp off. Looking up, she saw Angel gazing at her intently.
"What?" she asked, a bit unnerved.
"Nothing," Angel just shook his head.
Willow considered pressing the issue, but decided against it. A moment of silence lapsed before Willow finally spoke, "You're really happy here, huh? Well, obviously not like 'true happiness' happy, but, well, you guys are just so...like a family."
"We are a family."
"That's nice, that you have that here. Everything in Sunnydale has been really strained recently, you know? It feels like everyone's been drifting apart."
"I can imagine," Angel nodded.
"It feels a bit odd, being here."
Angel paused for a moment, studying Willow, before softly reminding her, "You know you never have to feel out of place with me."
"I'll keep that in mind," Willow smiled at him. A thoughtful look crossed her face as she suddenly asked, "Um, Angel? Who are Wolfram and Hart?"
Angel simply groaned at the question.
***
"Well?" Lilah huffed impatiently, towering over a quivering man who was practically steeped in scrolls, papers, and books.
Eugene Peters, Wolfram & Hart's Ancient Texts Translator, gulped audibly as he looked the fearsome woman in the eyes. "Um, you see, the thing is, the passages are worded in a very tricky manner--"
"I don't give a damn how tricky it is; you're paid to clear it up! Now I want you to give me something I can use in the next hour, or I'll have you eviscerated."
When put that way, "Well, there is one section that I've been particularly concentrating on, but I have to warn you that this is more of an interpretation that a strict translation."
"What does it say?"
"Essentially, it would be something along the lines of 'The Mouth of Hell shall lie in flames, and the Gate of Heaven will heed her call.' Though I can't be sure of the actual expression--"
"Did you just say 'her'?" Lilah asked, latching onto the only part of the statement that made any sense to her at the moment.
"Yes. The word here is in its feminine form, so it would be safe to assume that this warrior is female."
"Well, that narrows the search down," Lilah mused, "but what does the rest of it mean?"
"Some sort of fire, perhaps?" Eugene shrugged.
Lilah didn't respond as she reread the notes Eugene had written down so far. After a few minutes, she spoke again. "I need something more to work with here. Have you got anything else?"
"Not yet."
Too lost in her thoughts to make a scathing retort, Lilah merely nodded as she turned to leave his office. "When you have something more, let me know."
***
Wesley exhaled as he leaned back in his chair to escape from his task for a moment. The pieces of the Aiterion Scrolls that had been left behind were mostly fragments of larger passages, and most of those fragments seemed to have no connection to any of the present events. Sure, he had skimmed over some writings about a few more apocalypses scheduled to occur in the next century or so, but he doubted that that was the information Wolfram & Hart was so eager to obtain.
Moving on to the next set of text, Wesley froze as he recognized the first line. 'The Souled One.' Finally, he was getting somewhere!
With renewed vigor, Wesley skimmed over the writings, jotting down what he recognized and looking up what he didn't. After some minutes, he looked down at his rather broken translation. 'The Two shall meet... balance shall be restored... Darkness and Light upon the battlefield... the Paths of the Warriors determined...'
"Oh my," Wesley breathed aloud.
"Wesley?" Fred asked, still seated beside him, "did you find something?"
Her question caught the attention of the others in the room, as they gathered to hear Wesley reply, "Yes, I think I have."
END PART FIVE
"You know, you really should get yourself checked out by a professional," Cordelia pointed out as she finished bandaging Gunn's shoulder. "I mean, cuts, bruises, scratches -- these are things I can deal with. Bullet wounds? That's a little out of my league."
"You seem to be doing just fine," Gunn replied as he slowly flexed out his arm. "Besides, the bullet went clean through."
"Yeah, but it could still get infected, which always leads to the possibility of amputation..."
"I think I'll be checking myself into a hospital," Gunn stood, nodding his head.
"Works every time," Cordelia smiled to herself.
"Wesley, how are those translations coming along?" Angel reappeared in the room and walked over to Wesley, who was frantically working at translating what he could of the pieces of the scroll that were left behind.
"I'm not really sure..." Wesley trailed off as he turned his attention to yet another old reference book, apparently searching for something.
"We're still working on it," Fred supplied, seeing that Wesley had quickly become engrossed in whatever passage he was reading.
"Where's Willow?" Cordelia asked, coming to stand next to Angel.
"I just showed her to her room; she's unpacking a few things. She'll be right down."
"Did you find anything out?" Gunn joined the conversation.
Angel considered his words for a moment. He was still unsure how, or even if, Willow's recent experiences with magick abuse had any relation to Cordelia's visions, and he felt a bit awkward discussing the matter without her consent.
"Not really. Things in Sunnydale have been a bit rough recently, but I don't really think there's any direct connection to the visions."
"So then what do we do now?" Cordelia asked softly, worried for the redhead. Since Willow was the only person she had really kept in contact with in Sunnydale over the past couple of years, she found herself even more driven to help get to the bottom of things.
Willow watched from the top of the staircase as Angel and his friends engaged in a discussion about something. Most likely her. She couldn't help but note how at ease Angel seemed around everybody. He really had built something special here...
Sighing, Willow shook her head as she finally descended the steps. "Hey," she greeted a bit nervously. For the first time in a long time, she felt like an outsider.
"All settled in?" Angel asked.
"Yeah. This place is, well, wow," Willow waved her hands around, trying to express the grandeur of the building. "So, what's...going on?"
"Well, Wesley and Fred are working on those scrolls, trying to get some clue as to what information they hold--"
"--to try and find out why someone would want to steal them," Willow finished, nodding in understanding.
"Exactly."
"Well, do you have any idea who would want to steal the scrolls?" Willow questioned, trying to find some way to help. If she could find some way to be useful, maybe she wouldn't feel so out of place.
"Oh we know *exactly* who was behind this," Cordelia replied. She exchanged glances with Angel and Gunn, who seemed to agree with her.
"I don't see why we can't just corner that lawyer chic and take the scrolls back," Gunn offered, "she's gotta be the one who set this up."
"You're probably right," Angel nodded, "I'd just like to know what they're up to first."
"Well, only the scrolls are going to tell us that," Cordelia said.
"The scrolls..." Angel mused, "how, exactly, did they know where the scrolls were being kept?"
Both Wesley and Fred looked up at this statement, which seemed to have the entire group pondering.
"You know, I never considered that," Wesley stated.
"Well, it ain't like anyone from Wolfram and Hart was ever given an all access tour of the building," Gunn offered.
"No one that we know of," Wesley's face lit with realization.
"How else would they know exactly where to look?" Angel's expression indicated that he had come to the same conclusion as Wesley.
"So, what? You're saying someone snuck in here and mapped out the entire hotel?" Cordelia questioned. "That seems a bit time consuming if you ask me."
"Well, there were those few days where everyone was trapped in Pylea," Fred reminded them.
"Damn!" Gunn summed up the thoughts going through everyone's head.
"Well, there isn't anything that we can do about that situation right now," Wesley quickly took charge. "I think the thing for us to concentrate on at the moment is getting back the scrolls that were stolen."
"I'll get them back," Angel promised menacingly.
"Good. In the meantime, Fred and I will work on deciphering what we can here. Gunn, I think Cordelia was right. You should get your shoulder checked out. And Cordelia..." he trailed off as she saw Cordelia and Willow standing together. "There is still the issue of your vision."
"Willow and I are on it," Cordelia replied cheerily, draping an arm over Willow's shoulders.
Willow stiffened slightly at the contact, not used to being so friendly, at least in person, with the ex-cheerleader. Her mind was spinning with all the unfamiliar information that she had just been bombarded with. Lawyers? Wolfram and Hart? Pylea?
Her musings were cut short as Gunn announced that he was off to go see a doctor. Once he had left, Willow turned her attention to Cordelia, giving her a questioning look, as if asking what she was supposed to do now.
Cordelia, in turn, looked at Angel. Understanding the look, Angel shrugged as he spoke, "There really isn't much that we can do right now on that front."
"Well, I could help Wesley with the translations," Willow offered. "Research is at least *something* I know I can get right, and it seems more important at the moment."
"And I guess I'll go assess the damage to the storage room," Cordelia sighed resolutely, obviously getting tired of always having to clean up after the hotel was trashed.
Willow smiled slightly as she watched Cordelia stomp off. Looking up, she saw Angel gazing at her intently.
"What?" she asked, a bit unnerved.
"Nothing," Angel just shook his head.
Willow considered pressing the issue, but decided against it. A moment of silence lapsed before Willow finally spoke, "You're really happy here, huh? Well, obviously not like 'true happiness' happy, but, well, you guys are just so...like a family."
"We are a family."
"That's nice, that you have that here. Everything in Sunnydale has been really strained recently, you know? It feels like everyone's been drifting apart."
"I can imagine," Angel nodded.
"It feels a bit odd, being here."
Angel paused for a moment, studying Willow, before softly reminding her, "You know you never have to feel out of place with me."
"I'll keep that in mind," Willow smiled at him. A thoughtful look crossed her face as she suddenly asked, "Um, Angel? Who are Wolfram and Hart?"
Angel simply groaned at the question.
***
"Well?" Lilah huffed impatiently, towering over a quivering man who was practically steeped in scrolls, papers, and books.
Eugene Peters, Wolfram & Hart's Ancient Texts Translator, gulped audibly as he looked the fearsome woman in the eyes. "Um, you see, the thing is, the passages are worded in a very tricky manner--"
"I don't give a damn how tricky it is; you're paid to clear it up! Now I want you to give me something I can use in the next hour, or I'll have you eviscerated."
When put that way, "Well, there is one section that I've been particularly concentrating on, but I have to warn you that this is more of an interpretation that a strict translation."
"What does it say?"
"Essentially, it would be something along the lines of 'The Mouth of Hell shall lie in flames, and the Gate of Heaven will heed her call.' Though I can't be sure of the actual expression--"
"Did you just say 'her'?" Lilah asked, latching onto the only part of the statement that made any sense to her at the moment.
"Yes. The word here is in its feminine form, so it would be safe to assume that this warrior is female."
"Well, that narrows the search down," Lilah mused, "but what does the rest of it mean?"
"Some sort of fire, perhaps?" Eugene shrugged.
Lilah didn't respond as she reread the notes Eugene had written down so far. After a few minutes, she spoke again. "I need something more to work with here. Have you got anything else?"
"Not yet."
Too lost in her thoughts to make a scathing retort, Lilah merely nodded as she turned to leave his office. "When you have something more, let me know."
***
Wesley exhaled as he leaned back in his chair to escape from his task for a moment. The pieces of the Aiterion Scrolls that had been left behind were mostly fragments of larger passages, and most of those fragments seemed to have no connection to any of the present events. Sure, he had skimmed over some writings about a few more apocalypses scheduled to occur in the next century or so, but he doubted that that was the information Wolfram & Hart was so eager to obtain.
Moving on to the next set of text, Wesley froze as he recognized the first line. 'The Souled One.' Finally, he was getting somewhere!
With renewed vigor, Wesley skimmed over the writings, jotting down what he recognized and looking up what he didn't. After some minutes, he looked down at his rather broken translation. 'The Two shall meet... balance shall be restored... Darkness and Light upon the battlefield... the Paths of the Warriors determined...'
"Oh my," Wesley breathed aloud.
"Wesley?" Fred asked, still seated beside him, "did you find something?"
Her question caught the attention of the others in the room, as they gathered to hear Wesley reply, "Yes, I think I have."
END PART FIVE