Part Eight

Los Angeles
8 am
Angel staggered down the stairs into the hotel lobby, closely followed by Willow and Lorne. Gunn was on the phone, and it was obvious from his tone that he was talking to Fred, his voice dipping to an inaudible pitch occasionally as they confirmed their feelings for each other. Tara had just made a fresh pot of coffee, and busied herself with cups and spoons as Angel sat down in the office chair.
The vampire strummed his fingers on the desk and watched Gunn, tension in his face as he waited for the call to end. Tara offered him coffee, but he declined. Glad of something to do, Willow accepted a cup, and Lorne took his as he hovered in the doorway. Eventually, Gunn realised something was going on, and he hung up.
Angel grabbed the phone and dialled.
"Giles," he said, knowing the Watcher would recognise his voice. "How soon can you get here?"
Brushing aside questions on his welfare, Angel explained his plan – he wanted the portal-opening spell to be performed in the office, and either Giles or Anya were needed since they knew their roles in the spell and they could get to LA quicker than Gunn or Lorne could learn it all. Angel himself would take the fourth role: he was familiar with many spells, could easily master the language, and would be ready by the time the Sunnydale counterpart arrived.
Willow had wanted to perform the spell as soon as Buffy had disappeared from the office, but Tara and the others had persuaded her to wait until they had the four people necessary to perform it correctly. She had phoned Giles, and although distraught that Buffy had been transported away again before he'd even known she was back in this dimension, he too had talked Willow out of it. The redhead had fidgeted and paced for almost three hours until Lorne had announced that Angel was awake; she'd then raced to his room to put her proposal to him. Tempted as he was, Angel understood the power of such spells, and knew that it was dangerous to attempt it without the proper components. It had to be right – Buffy depended on it.
Talking now to Giles, Angel struggled to maintain control. The Watcher had told him briefly of Cordelia's vision, and suggested the vampire call the seer for a more detailed account, since Cordelia had been somewhat disorientated when they'd spoken an hour earlier.
"I believe she's waiting for you to call," Giles added.
Frowning, Angel agreed, hung up, and dialled the Summers' residence. As always, thoughts of Buffy and happier times wandered into his mind as he automatically keyed in the numbers, and he allowed himself a brief smile. Then Fred's voice brought him back to the present.
"Hey," he said. "Is Cordy there?"
"Where the hell have you been?" Cordelia demanded, having all but grabbed the phone from Fred when she realised who was calling. "I sent you a text message, hours ago!"
"Text message?" Angel repeated, baffled. He was only just getting to grips with the temperamental calling facilities of his cell phone – texting was totally alien to him.
"Never mind," Cordelia sighed. "Are you okay?"
She told him of her dream, and was reassured to learn that only the Wolfram and Hart connection had been prophetic. Then she described her vision, trying to ignore the sharp intakes of breath in the kitchen behind her and on the other end of the phone as she reported what she'd seen.
"Can I do anything here, to help?" Cordelia finished, keenly attuned to Angel's emotions.
"Stay safe," Angel replied. "Just make sure you're all safe. We'll get the portal open here. Wait! Hang on." Aware that the major fighting and magickal forces were with him in Los Angeles, he suddenly realised how vulnerable he'd left them in Sunnydale. He retrieved an address book from the desk drawer, and leafed through the pages. "Get Wesley to ring this number – reinforcements if you need them – make sure he tells them I ..."
"Why Wesley?" Cordelia asked, 21st century girl taking umbrage. "I …"
"They're Stamkesh demons," Angel told her. "They're … um … kind of … chauvinistic?"
"You mean they're pigheaded?" Cordelia asked, musing over the porcine image that conjured.
"No," Angel said patiently, "they don't acknowledge female equality. Or females, period. Just get Wes to call them."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Los Angeles
10 am
Gavin and Lilah had been bickering for over an hour, and the elderly gypsy who sat in the centre of the vault had had more than she could stand. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes again and tried to shut out the two muted voices behind her. The task should have been simple, completed in minutes, but there were strong forces at work and she was having difficulty in finding what she sought. Add to that the constant interruptions to her concentration …
"We're on the same side," Gavin hissed, furious with Lilah for keeping so much information from him.
"Really?" Lilah arched an eyebrow at him. "Seems to me you have your own side."
Gavin rolled his eyes. They'd been throwing accusations and counter-accusations at each other all morning, and were still at impasse: Lilah was as reluctant to share her project as he was with his.
"It is no good," the gypsy cried, sweeping her hand over the diagram before her to clear it of herbs and other items. "I see nothing."
She raised herself fluidly to her feet, an elegant move for such an ancient body, and looked darkly at the two lawyers.
"Someone hides the truth," she stated, noticing the discomfort in both young faces. "The artefact is hidden from me, protected."
"You mean whoever has the Key has performed a spell to hide it?" Lilah asked inquisitively, glad that the gypsy hadn't read her mind.
The old woman nodded.
"Powerful forces," she said, obviously impressed by her unknown adversary.
"Curiouser and curiouser," Lilah murmured. She cocked her head at Gavin. "Pay the lady," she instructed.
"She hasn't told us anything," Park argued.
"But we may need her services again," Lilah explained, as if to a particularly dense child.
Once the woman had left, the two lawyers faced each other.
"You know it had to be Angel," Park said, maddened by the time wasted with the old hag. "Why bother with all this?"
"Following a hunch," Lilah replied cryptically, turning on her heel with a smug smile, milking every opportunity to keep Gavin guessing.
Park watched her leave, shaking his head. Then he reached for his cell phone.
"Cyril," he said with a smile. "Update me."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Buffy stepped into the portal, feeling its wet shimmering sides close in on her. For a moment it felt claustrophobic and she started to push against it, but then it enveloped her and she was surprised at how warm and comforting it felt. She felt her feet leave the ground, and relaxed into the floating sensation that overcame her.
She tried to open her eyes, but when they remained firmly closed she simply accepted it. She felt warm and safe, and although it was strange to be floating, she enjoyed it, like lazing on float-bed in a pool on a hot summer's day.
Devoid of curiosity, she simply allowed herself to be carried by the portal, neither knowing nor caring where it would take her. She hoped it would take her nowhere, but just continue to carry her floating like this forever. Maybe it would take her back to heaven …

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Los Angeles
Noon
With a final confident flourish, Willow completed the diagram on the office floor and quickly checked it. Although the room had been cleared of furniture, it still seemed cramped for such a difficult spell, but she was satisfied that she'd done a good job. She and Tara then placed candles and stones at strategic points on and around the chalk markings, following instructions in the huge leather-bound book Giles had brought with him.
Giles watched the two witches, checking their actions against the book's directions, as he finalised the strategy with Lorne, Gunn and Kenjiin. Once the portal was open, Angel and Gunn would go through with the key, followed by Kenjiin. Willow had prepared a seeking spell, which she would perform through the open portal to locate Buffy. Angel would use that, and the key, to reach the Slayer and bring her back. Once in the Kravlarian dimension, Kenjiin could hold the portal open with his own magicks, hopefully long enough for Angel, Gunn and Buffy to escape. Lorne would take Angel's place in the spell ring as soon as the vampire stepped through the portal; he didn't have to say or do anything, but was needed to maintain the four integral parts of the spell.
Angel sat in the far office, going over his role in the spell even though he'd memorised it hours ago. He needed to concentrate on it, otherwise his mind would keep reliving the images which had assaulted his senses from Cordelia's vision report. He had to put them aside, or at least believe that he would get there in time to prevent her vision coming true.
"We're ready," he heard Willow say, and looked up at the redhead, who stood in the doorway between the two offices.
Angel nodded.
"Just waiting for the ladies to finish, then we'll get going," he said, inclining his head towards the main body of the hotel.
Floating near the domed ceiling of the lobby, three female entities chanted softly in lilting voices, not in unison but one after the other as if their three voices were one. Willow had been itching to ask them several questions, recognising their power, but they had been up there all the time she'd been preparing the portal spell.
"Will they be long?" she asked Angel.
"No idea," he answered, moving around the desk to view her handiwork on the floor. The others nodded tensely at him.
"Mmmmmmm, Angel," sighed three breathy voices, as the Transcuding Furies floated down to the lobby floor.
He smiled at them, and they all but swooned.
"We are …" one began.
"… done," the second finished.
"Sanctorium sum," the third confirmed.
"Thankyou, ladies," Angel said. "I owe you."
"Mmmmmmm," they all sighed.
"We will…"
"… collect..."
"… soon."
The three entities shimmered, then disappeared. Angel found himself under the curious scrutiny of two females, two demons, and two jealous males. Embarrassed, he tried to shrug it off.
"What …?" Gunn began, eager to know exactly how Angel would repay the entities for the protective spell they had cast, which would keep the Hyperion safe from demon attacks while they were in Kravlar.
"Not a chance," Angel shook his head.
"Come on, guys," Willow said. "Portal time."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sunnydale
12.30 pm
Anya slammed the til shut and smiled broadly as she handed the gift-wrapped jar of snakes teeth to her customer.
"Thankyou for shopping at the Magic Box," she said chirpily. "Please come again. Soon. We're open tomorrow. Have a nice day."
The customer took her purchase and hurried out, casting backward glances at the unnervingly enthusiastic sales clerk who continued to smile encouragingly at her. As the bell tinkled to signal that they were alone again, Cordelia looked up from the book she was trying to read.
"You might want to ease up on the customer services," she advised the former demon. "If you're too nice they'll think you're trying to flog them inferior goods. Just check out Sears … they're all over you like a rash in there. So I've heard," she added, not wanting to admit that she'd actually been into one of the department stores.
Anya pouted. Humans were so fickle, and it was so difficult to please them all, or to find the line between nice and … not nice, or too nice. Things were much simpler when she'd been a vengeance demon – there were no grey areas when it came to visiting plague, pestilence and other horrors on the deserving … Anya sighed. No point in dreaming of happier days, she was human now, and had to get on with it.
She smiled at Cordelia.
"You're a shopping expert," she said. "I can learn a lot from you."
Seizing the distraction, Cordelia sat upright and pushed the book aside, ignoring Wesley's disapproving frown. She placed herself mentally on Rodeo Drive, and prepared to take Anya on an imaginary trip to the best stores, where the staff treated customers like royalty but without the hard sell.
"Shouldn't we have heard something by now?" Fred asked, looking again at the clock behind the counter. "How long's it gonna take?"
"Time moves in different ways, in different dimensions," Wesley reminded her, taking off his glasses and pinching the bridge of his nose. The young Texan nodded, remembering her long imprisonment in Pylea "I'm sure they'll call as soon as … it's over."
Fred nodded glumly, and turned her gaze back to the computer screen.
Wesley was afraid to let himself get too optimistic. Demon dimensions were chaotic and unruly, and they had little idea what Angel and Gunn would be up against, let alone how long it would take them to find Buffy and get her out of there.
They had received information on Kravlar from several sources, and were building a picture of the hellish place, but had learned little that would help speed up the process of rescuing the Slayer.
He had as much faith in Willow and her spells as the others did, and accepted Kenjiin's ability to hold the portal open from the other side, but he knew all too well that there were too many unknown factors to rely on their powers completely. That was why he'd suggested that morning that Cordelia and Fred pass the time in trying to help him find – or devise – a way of sealing the portal in place once it had opened. He suspected it was possible, but so far they had not found a way to do it.
They had several hours before dark, and could leave any vampire or demon activity to Spike and the Stamkesh demons, but Wesley felt a sense of urgency which he was trying to hide from the girls in his company. He and Cordelia had discussed her vision at length that morning, and both had agreed that time was a luxury they couldn't afford – in this dimension or any other. Dawn, Fred and Anya had been spared the finer details, but even they understood that it was a race they might not win.
Cleaning his spectacle lens with a hanky, Wesley wondered how Dawn was getting on, trying to pay attention in school while her sister was missing on another world. He could only guess at how difficult it was for her to be the Slayer's sibling, and duty-bound to tell no-one what was happening. She had a harder time of it than Buffy, who had always had friends to confide in and share the horrors with; Dawn could not breathe a word to her own friends, but had to pretend she was a normal fifteen-year-old with a normal older sister. He shook his head. Buffy had certainly broken the Slayer mould – she had a sister, friends, lovers, and a social life, all the things denied every other slayer throughout the centuries. 'And no-one deserves it more,' he said to himself, with a sigh.
"Earth to Wesley." Cordelia's sarcastic tone broke into his thoughts.
He looked up, realised he was still rubbing the same lens, and replaced his glasses to look at Cordelia, who ticked her gaze across the table at Fred.
"Think I've found something," Fred announced. "Look at this."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Los Angeles
3 pm
Hrahek slammed his fist so violently onto Lilah's desk that pens and pencils were flung from their holders, and the phone bounced from its cradle onto the floor. Lilah flinched, and stared at the demon, not daring to retrieve anything.
She understood the demon's displeasure. Things were not going well for Hrahek, who had originally agreed to attack Angel and the Slayer at their separate locations in return for Kenjiin, whom Wolfram and Hart had imprisoned. Now, Kenjiin had escaped, and was probably helping Angel to look for Buffy. The key to Hrahek's demon domain – deposited decades ago for safekeeping – was missing, and also probably in Angel's hands, and could end up in Kenjiin's possession. Hrahek's mortal enemy seemed to be getting the upper hand.
He had returned to Lilah, demanding his Key in return for the Slayer, and had been shocked to discover that the girl was not the collateral he had thought her to be – Lilah had no interest in her, and neither did her firm. They didn't care if she languished forever in Kravlar – they had hoped Hrahek or his demons might have killed her in Sunnydale – and they certainly were not going to put extra effort in retrieving the Kravlarian Key in order simply to secure her, alive or dead.
"We are trying to find the key," Lilah assured the demon. "But not because you have the Slayer. The key is the important thing – as is your custom," she added, not wanting to lose another client so soon after Kenjiin had … taken his business elsewhere.
"She is no use to you?" Hrahek pressed.
"No," Lilah said. "Kill one, another replaces her. Except not in her case. She's jumped the line, one of a kind. Killing her won't make any difference to that." She saw that Hrahek's understanding was floundering. "We have no interest in the Slayer," she said slowly. "Do what you want with her. But we will find your Key."
With a growl of frustration, Hrahek stormed out of the office, almost pulling the door from its hinges as he went.
Lilah exhaled slowly. She leaned forward, and flicked the switch on her intercom.
"Did you get all that?" she asked.
"I did," Nathan Reid's voice confirmed.
Lilah smiled, and began to tidy her desk.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~