Part 1
Cordy was sorting through her office, just trying to look for something to do. It had been a very slow week and everyone was getting restless with the lack of clients. She mindlessly thumbed through old files, as if busying herself would get her mind off of their financial problems. Gunn slouched in the hotel lobby playing his Game Boy, too preoccupied to care about anything else. He was determined to beat his highest score. Fred was in Wesley's office, flitting about and chattering away while Wesley quietly listened to her from his desk, a small smile forming on his face. Meanwhile, Angel descended down the stairs with something other than business on his mind.
"Cordy," he said in a nervous manner, as he slowly approached her.
"Hi Angel!" she exclaimed, as she jumped up from a bending down near a file cabinet, and flashed a huge smile his way.
"What are you doing?"
"Nothing. Absolutely nothing. We haven't had a case in over a week, which means we haven't been paid in over a week. You know what that means? No money. Angel, we need money."
"Yes.we do. But you know, there was something else I wanted to talk about."
"You aren't upset I wiped up the coffee spill with your shirt, are you? I mean, it was a black shirt, and you have a million of those. It's not like- "
"Cordy, it isn't about the shirt. Wait, you cleaned up a spill with my shirt?" he paused for a moment, then continued. "Nevermind, it's not about the shirt. I was just thinking about you and me, and how we've grown closer over the years and-"
"Angel. Vision. Grab me!"
Cordy started to fall towards the floor, arms stretched out as her head bobbed back, but luckily Angel caught her before she fell. She started to writhe about in his strong arms as images of a man performing a spell in a modernly decorated mansion flashed inside her head. He was playing with dark magic, which she knew was about to backfire on him.
"Oh, eww!" Cordy gasped, all the while trying to catch her breath.
"What is it? What did you see?" Angel asked quietly, as he slowly eased her on to the chair. He tried not to notice how worn out the latest vision made her look.
"It's seems like some bored, rich guy in Bel Air is casting a spell. I am not sure why, you've got to love the vagueness of these things, but he is going to summon a demon which will eat his brains and make a necklace out of his rib cage. Can you say yuck?"
"Do you know what kind of demon it was, Cordy?" piped in Wes. The screams from the latest vision sent everyone running into Cordy's office.
"No, all I know is it is going to kill him. Oh, and it's kind of orange-y. I wrote down the address for you. Hurry, before anything happens."
Cordy handed Wes the paper with all the information about the man in distress. She motioned for Angel and Gunn to go along with him; she knew it would happen soon, and she didn't want them to be too late.
"Cordy, are you sure you don't want me to stay with you? You seem." Angel's voice was filled with concern, but he didn't want to alarm her.
"Nah, I will be fine. It's not like anyone split my head open with an axe - it just feels that way."
"Angel, I will be here with Cordy. Go along and do your fighting thing, I am sure that will calm your nerves." Fred said as she came over to them with a glass of water in her hand for Cordy. "Here you go, Cordy."
"Thanks, Fred." Cordy turned to Angel and said, "Run along now, I will be fine."
"When I was in Pylea I almost had my head split open by an axe. Twice, actually. Once I ran, but the other time Angel saved me." Fred stared dreamily at the ceiling. "Well, it actually wasn't going to be split open, more like split along my neck, but thankfully that didn't happen, or else I wouldn't have a head. Or I wouldn't even be here. I wouldn't be talking to you!"
"What a shame." Cordy remarked in a deadpan tone as she held the glass of water to her head. Her head ached, and it wasn't just from the visions. Angel was confusing her.
++++
Angel, Wes and Gunn arrived at a huge, white mansion, two stories high and set deep within the estate, just like Cordy described at the address she gave them. Although, not without a struggle.
"Well, if we knew we would have been sneaking into someone's estate over gates I would've brought along your gadgets." Wes commented. He looked around the mansion, which took on a rather creepy appearance in the dark, especially with the full moon obscured by wispy clouds creating a sinister effect. The neatly trimmed hedges, as well as a big, iron gate was surrounding the place to keep out intruders. Well, most of them since they managed to sneak in, but it wasn't easy. Sure, Angel could jump to the top, grab on, then hop over. Gunn and Wes had to climb over it, which proved difficult with the sleek bars.
"Well, how was I supposed to know there'd be a gate." Angel whined.
"You guys should've took note when Cordy said this place was in Bel Air. Like we could just walk up to the front door." Gunn stated, obviously annoyed.
The three men cautiously approached the front door, more afraid of setting of an alarm or alerting guard dogs than anything supernatural. Angel slowly opened the door, and when he didn't hear an alarm go off, he motioned for Wes and Gunn to come in.
"You guys check upstairs, I will check this floor." Angel commanded.
"Hey, I'm the boss now, you can't give orders," Wes noticed the annoyed look Angel gave him, "but the does sound like a good idea. So let's do that."
As Angel went from room to room, he didn't notice anything out of the ordinary, or even anyone in the house. He just took in the trendy décor which dominated the interior of the house; the modern art signaled that the resident was into the latest fads in Los Angeles. Everything about this place screamed money.
Then, all of a sudden, he heard a scream come from a room down the hall. He ran towards the noise as fast as he could, and when he arrived he found a man cowering in a corner, clearly terrified of what he saw. Standing in front of him was an orange, slimy demon with three eyes and seven feet tall; its long arms reaching for the man who summoned him, as he growled from a hole in his face full of razor sharp teeth. Angel grabbed his axe and charged the demon as fast as he could, then struck him hard in the side of his head. While slowing the demon down, it didn't kill him. Wes and Gunn arrived with their weapons ready, and right away they began to attack the demon with as much strength as they could muster, striking their weapons and ducking blows. With one smack from the demon, Gunn flew across the room.
"Gunn, quick, throw me your axe!" Angel shouted across the room.
Gunn quickly tossed his weapon to Angel. Angel caught it in the air, and with one mighty swing he took off the demon's head causing sticky, blue goo to squirt from his veins all over Wes.
"Hmm, thanks." Wes responded as he casually wiped his glasses clean.
Angel went over to the man still huddled in the corner, with Wes and Gunn following not too far behind him.
"That was a Fengata demon you summoned, a very lethal hunter demon. Why would you send for one?" Wes inquired.
"He.he j-just doesn't hunt," the man, still shaken from what happened, stuttered as he tried to explain, "he seeks out a certain type of demon if under the right spell. I guess I screwed it up"
"A certain type of demon? Why would you need this demon to find another one?" Gunn wondered.
"Because, my wife has been kidnapped by some Bhorai demons and I needed him to go get her. If I don't get her back by the end of the month, they will sacrifice her in an attempt to end the world."
Wes spotted a clear opportunity to get some business as well as saving a life. "Sir, we are from Angel Investigations. We investigate supernatural occurrences, and we'd be more than obliged to help you with this problem."
"Great!" the man exclaimed. "I will pay you anything, including your expenses to New York."
"New York?" all three men asked in unison.
"Yes, New York, for some reason the sacrifice needed to be done there. I am still unclear on the details of what is happening," he started to choke up thinking of the danger his wife was in, "and all I know is I want her back."
And so New York it was.
TBC
Cordy was sorting through her office, just trying to look for something to do. It had been a very slow week and everyone was getting restless with the lack of clients. She mindlessly thumbed through old files, as if busying herself would get her mind off of their financial problems. Gunn slouched in the hotel lobby playing his Game Boy, too preoccupied to care about anything else. He was determined to beat his highest score. Fred was in Wesley's office, flitting about and chattering away while Wesley quietly listened to her from his desk, a small smile forming on his face. Meanwhile, Angel descended down the stairs with something other than business on his mind.
"Cordy," he said in a nervous manner, as he slowly approached her.
"Hi Angel!" she exclaimed, as she jumped up from a bending down near a file cabinet, and flashed a huge smile his way.
"What are you doing?"
"Nothing. Absolutely nothing. We haven't had a case in over a week, which means we haven't been paid in over a week. You know what that means? No money. Angel, we need money."
"Yes.we do. But you know, there was something else I wanted to talk about."
"You aren't upset I wiped up the coffee spill with your shirt, are you? I mean, it was a black shirt, and you have a million of those. It's not like- "
"Cordy, it isn't about the shirt. Wait, you cleaned up a spill with my shirt?" he paused for a moment, then continued. "Nevermind, it's not about the shirt. I was just thinking about you and me, and how we've grown closer over the years and-"
"Angel. Vision. Grab me!"
Cordy started to fall towards the floor, arms stretched out as her head bobbed back, but luckily Angel caught her before she fell. She started to writhe about in his strong arms as images of a man performing a spell in a modernly decorated mansion flashed inside her head. He was playing with dark magic, which she knew was about to backfire on him.
"Oh, eww!" Cordy gasped, all the while trying to catch her breath.
"What is it? What did you see?" Angel asked quietly, as he slowly eased her on to the chair. He tried not to notice how worn out the latest vision made her look.
"It's seems like some bored, rich guy in Bel Air is casting a spell. I am not sure why, you've got to love the vagueness of these things, but he is going to summon a demon which will eat his brains and make a necklace out of his rib cage. Can you say yuck?"
"Do you know what kind of demon it was, Cordy?" piped in Wes. The screams from the latest vision sent everyone running into Cordy's office.
"No, all I know is it is going to kill him. Oh, and it's kind of orange-y. I wrote down the address for you. Hurry, before anything happens."
Cordy handed Wes the paper with all the information about the man in distress. She motioned for Angel and Gunn to go along with him; she knew it would happen soon, and she didn't want them to be too late.
"Cordy, are you sure you don't want me to stay with you? You seem." Angel's voice was filled with concern, but he didn't want to alarm her.
"Nah, I will be fine. It's not like anyone split my head open with an axe - it just feels that way."
"Angel, I will be here with Cordy. Go along and do your fighting thing, I am sure that will calm your nerves." Fred said as she came over to them with a glass of water in her hand for Cordy. "Here you go, Cordy."
"Thanks, Fred." Cordy turned to Angel and said, "Run along now, I will be fine."
"When I was in Pylea I almost had my head split open by an axe. Twice, actually. Once I ran, but the other time Angel saved me." Fred stared dreamily at the ceiling. "Well, it actually wasn't going to be split open, more like split along my neck, but thankfully that didn't happen, or else I wouldn't have a head. Or I wouldn't even be here. I wouldn't be talking to you!"
"What a shame." Cordy remarked in a deadpan tone as she held the glass of water to her head. Her head ached, and it wasn't just from the visions. Angel was confusing her.
++++
Angel, Wes and Gunn arrived at a huge, white mansion, two stories high and set deep within the estate, just like Cordy described at the address she gave them. Although, not without a struggle.
"Well, if we knew we would have been sneaking into someone's estate over gates I would've brought along your gadgets." Wes commented. He looked around the mansion, which took on a rather creepy appearance in the dark, especially with the full moon obscured by wispy clouds creating a sinister effect. The neatly trimmed hedges, as well as a big, iron gate was surrounding the place to keep out intruders. Well, most of them since they managed to sneak in, but it wasn't easy. Sure, Angel could jump to the top, grab on, then hop over. Gunn and Wes had to climb over it, which proved difficult with the sleek bars.
"Well, how was I supposed to know there'd be a gate." Angel whined.
"You guys should've took note when Cordy said this place was in Bel Air. Like we could just walk up to the front door." Gunn stated, obviously annoyed.
The three men cautiously approached the front door, more afraid of setting of an alarm or alerting guard dogs than anything supernatural. Angel slowly opened the door, and when he didn't hear an alarm go off, he motioned for Wes and Gunn to come in.
"You guys check upstairs, I will check this floor." Angel commanded.
"Hey, I'm the boss now, you can't give orders," Wes noticed the annoyed look Angel gave him, "but the does sound like a good idea. So let's do that."
As Angel went from room to room, he didn't notice anything out of the ordinary, or even anyone in the house. He just took in the trendy décor which dominated the interior of the house; the modern art signaled that the resident was into the latest fads in Los Angeles. Everything about this place screamed money.
Then, all of a sudden, he heard a scream come from a room down the hall. He ran towards the noise as fast as he could, and when he arrived he found a man cowering in a corner, clearly terrified of what he saw. Standing in front of him was an orange, slimy demon with three eyes and seven feet tall; its long arms reaching for the man who summoned him, as he growled from a hole in his face full of razor sharp teeth. Angel grabbed his axe and charged the demon as fast as he could, then struck him hard in the side of his head. While slowing the demon down, it didn't kill him. Wes and Gunn arrived with their weapons ready, and right away they began to attack the demon with as much strength as they could muster, striking their weapons and ducking blows. With one smack from the demon, Gunn flew across the room.
"Gunn, quick, throw me your axe!" Angel shouted across the room.
Gunn quickly tossed his weapon to Angel. Angel caught it in the air, and with one mighty swing he took off the demon's head causing sticky, blue goo to squirt from his veins all over Wes.
"Hmm, thanks." Wes responded as he casually wiped his glasses clean.
Angel went over to the man still huddled in the corner, with Wes and Gunn following not too far behind him.
"That was a Fengata demon you summoned, a very lethal hunter demon. Why would you send for one?" Wes inquired.
"He.he j-just doesn't hunt," the man, still shaken from what happened, stuttered as he tried to explain, "he seeks out a certain type of demon if under the right spell. I guess I screwed it up"
"A certain type of demon? Why would you need this demon to find another one?" Gunn wondered.
"Because, my wife has been kidnapped by some Bhorai demons and I needed him to go get her. If I don't get her back by the end of the month, they will sacrifice her in an attempt to end the world."
Wes spotted a clear opportunity to get some business as well as saving a life. "Sir, we are from Angel Investigations. We investigate supernatural occurrences, and we'd be more than obliged to help you with this problem."
"Great!" the man exclaimed. "I will pay you anything, including your expenses to New York."
"New York?" all three men asked in unison.
"Yes, New York, for some reason the sacrifice needed to be done there. I am still unclear on the details of what is happening," he started to choke up thinking of the danger his wife was in, "and all I know is I want her back."
And so New York it was.
TBC