Chapter 10
Friday, January 17th, 1986
Hill Valley, California
8: 14 P. M.
Biff and his gang eagerly watched the Essex, where the film festival was currently being held. Biff had chosen the evening show and not the late one since the greatest number of people attended the evening show. People who would soon provide food for their soulless vampires. The excited vampires were stationed in key spots around the theater and in the town square. Biff and his gang themselves were watching the action from the roof of the nearby Bank of America. Everything was ready for a massacre.
3-D checked his watch. "Geez, when do the movies end?" he complained.
"We've got 15 minutes," Skinhead told him, favoring him with a look. "You know, you look really stupid in those old 3-D glasses. We're not teenagers anymore."
"Excuse me for getting into the spirit of the thing," 3-D snapped. "And I prefer these to the glasses I have to wear now. Geekiest things on the planet."
"Can you even see, 3-D?" Match asked, getting comfortable on the roof.
"I've got contacts in. I can see." There was a pause. "Hey, Biff, are you sure this'll work?"
"Positive. All the school kids and families will be here. Lots of fun."
"What do you think happened to that group we sent to Darkness Falls?" Skinhead asked without thinking.
Biff glared at him. "You know damn well what happened. I was taken for a sucker."
"Sorry," Skinhead immediately apologized. He didn't want Biff to get even the slightest bit mad at him. He knew that could have serious repercussions. They returned to waiting in silence.
Finally, it was 8: 30. A swarm of people left the theater talking excitedly. Biff was glad to see at least one McFly in the bunch - Marty McFly, with his usual group of friends. He would have preferred George, but you couldn't have everything. With high hopes, he whistled, the signal to attack.
The soulless vampires burst from their hiding places, starved for human blood. Almost everyone exiting the theater froze in terror as they saw them, filthy and inhuman. A single soulless, braver and hungrier than the rest, charged a woman at the front. All the people near her screamed and ran for safety nearer the theater. The woman herself seemed paralyzed with fear as the vampire made his mad dash, fangs extended, drool running out of his mouth. Then, just as he was about to knock her down, she whipped something from her shopping bag.
A stake.
The soulless vampire didn't have a chance. The stake plunged through his heart like it was going through butter. Biff, watching, was stunned. "How did she know?"
Sarah smiled wickedly at the menacing vampires, relishing the power she felt in the body. "Come on, vamps! We're ready for you!" Around her, the other patrons of Darkness Falls who weren't Changed pulled out their weapons. The already-terrified humans got a further shock as all the souled vampires vamped out. The war was on.
A group decided to attack the 4 Time Trippers. 3 males and a female leapt as one at the friends. Doc and Mysteria easily tossed the ones that landed on them right off. Marty and Jennifer easily avoided the leaps. The soulless vampires attacked again, but Doc got them with his sleep inducer before they could even spring.
5 soulless attempted to surround a member of Darkness Falls. They succeeded, only to have stakes thrust into them by the Partials that had ringed them.
A female managed to grab a small child from one of the movie-goers. The mother, furious, whacked the vampire over the head with her handbag. "Put my child down, you monster!"
The vampire complied, heading for the mother instead. Before she could do anything, Louis sprang upon her from over the marquee. They wrestled furiously, each determined to kill the other. The mother grabbed her child and ran back into the theater.
Another soulless got Marty in a bear hug from behind. He managed to tear into the struggling teen's neck. Marty felt pure agony for a moment as his blood was sucked. Then Doc and Jennifer came to his rescue, Doc yanking the soulless vampire off as Jennifer staked it. Marty fell to his knees, rubbing his neck and whimpering.
Doc got down too and pulled him close. "I'm sorry. I felt it too. I'm so sorry you had to feel that."
"You were right, Doc. Having one of those things suck your blood hurts." He gratefully accepted a little of Doc's blood from his wrist. As he drank, the pain in his neck dulled. "How are we doin'?"
"Excellent. The new Partials and even the humans from Darkness Falls are a great help. Biff's army originally consisted of 33 soulless vampires. We've already killed 6."
"Great. Let's go kick some more vampire butt." He and his pals rejoined the fight, helping Magnus with a bulky vampire.
A male tried to attack Natalie, obviously after more than just her blood. Unfortunately (or fortunately), he hadn't counted on Nat's brand-new vampire boyfriend - Jay. The thirsty new vampire forced the soulless away from Nat. "Leave my girl alone!"
"Make me," the soulless vampire hissed. Jay took him up on his offer and jumped on him. He dug in with his claws and held on as, yowling, the soulless vampire tried to shake him off. He flew the male to the top of the Essex and dropped him. Bones shattered as the male landed, making him an easy target for Natalie's stake. She and Jay exchanged a loving glance.
Mysteria saw a soulless vampire lurching around with a stake sticking out of her back. "What the. . . ?"
"He bolted before I could shove it in all the way," a Partial yelled, kicking a female. "Sorry that I couldn't get him complete."
"Don't be. Watch this." With a kick that would later become famous in the 'Buffy' movie, she drove the stake completely in. "An oriental vampire friend taught me karate," she explained to the impressed Partial.
More and more soulless vampires fell. Biff watched in open-mouthed shock. This wasn't right at all! "What the hell?"
"Biff, aren't we supposed to be killing them?" asked Match, his compulsion about matches taking hold.
"That was the plan," Biff mumbled. "But those butt-heads are winning. How?"
"Yeah, there was no way Henry could've learned about today," Skinhead whispered, hoping Biff wouldn't hear him. "Biff, maybe we should help 'em out, huh?"
"And end up dead or in prison?" Biff snorted. "Yeah, sure. Maybe we'll get a cell next to Joey Baines."
"It was only a thought," Skinhead grumbled.
"Hey, Biff, I just noticed something," 3-D said, lifting his glasses for a better look. "Henry's not here."
"You sure, 3-D?"
"Positive! He ain't here, Biff."
"Must be afraid fighting will mess up his hair,' Skinhead muttered, rubbing his crewcut.
"Actually, Henry's dead," said a voice behind them. Startled, they all spun to see Doc standing behind them, clothes spattered with blood. "We staked him the night of your attack because he betrayed us."
"So he wasn't a dirty double-crosser!" Biff exclaimed in surprised relief. It had bothered him to think a guy that perfectly evil could be a goody-two-shoes.
"No. By the way, I'd recommend following Skinhead's course of action."
"Really? Why?" Skinhead asked suspiciously, backing away from Doc as much as he could.
Doc smiled at them, fangs showing. "Being put in jail is far better a fate than having to face souled vampires who aren't too happy with you." Eager for revenge, he charged Biff.
The bully darted out of the way just in time. Doc corrected his course and ran at him again, fumbling in his pocket for his sleep-inducer. He wasn't exactly fond of killing - even when it came to soulless vampires. He did that merely to survive, and often just got caught up in the heat of the moment. Yet he felt he might make an exception with Biff, if he could get him unconscious.
Match came to Biff's rescue. He lit Doc's labcoat on fire. Terrified of being cooked, Doc stripped the burning cloth off and stomped it, allowing Biff and his gang to flee through an old roof door. Cursing, Doc put out the fire and flew back down into the main battle, joining Jennifer in killing a female.
Biff burst out of the building, getting odd looks from those customers not mesmerized by the war outside. "Should I call them off right now or keep going and hope for the best?" he wondered, surveying the scene. His army was severely depleted, giving the souled vampires an even bigger advantage than before. And practically all the movie-goers had been herded back into the theater, leaving no easy prey for his group. He put his fingers in his mouth.
Then 3-D tapped him on the shoulder. "Not yet, Biff," he said, with an odd cheerfulness. "They haven't gotten him yet!" He pointed out Sherman Peabody, clinging to the theater marquee. Biff nodded, deciding to give the fight a few more minutes. Sherman's mental problems made him their most effective soulless vampire. As long as he was all right, there was a chance they could triumph.
Sherman dropped to the ground and chased a bunch of kids who hadn't gotten back into the Essex, looking more like a werewolf than a vampire. The souled vampires tried desperately to stake him, but with no luck. The other soulless cheered his attempt at feeding. It seemed the farmer would turn the tide of the battle from sheer persistence.
Then Doc and Marty attempted an attack on him.
The instant Sherman saw them, he froze, his eyes wide, fingers gripping the wall he had just climbed so tightly his knuckles were white. As they neared, he backed up. Puzzled by this atypical reaction, Doc read the Changed farmer's thoughts. "Oh my God. . . .They've come for me. . . .The space zombies have come back for me. . . ."
Doc immediately shared these thoughts with Marty, who chuckled. "I guess some good came from me accidentally wrecking Otis Peabody's barn back in '55."
"It's a little sad, though," Doc admitted. "Sherman wasn't a bad kid. And having your father committed to a institution when you're 10 can't help your own mental state. Too bad it has to end like this for him." Resigned to doing their duty, Doc and Marty began chasing Sherman.
The effect was like that of flame upon gunpowder. With a heartfelt shriek of "Space Zombies!", Sherman fled as fast as he could from the oncoming pair. He gave them quite a run for their money before they managed to steer him in the direction of Magnus. Their pal staked him mercifully and set him aside.
Biff knew it was time to call off his troops, or what was left of them. He whistled twice, the signal to break off the attack. 6 soulless vampires of the remaining 10 responded. Biff left the last 4 to their fate and fled the area, cursing his luck. "You'll be mine, Brown," he growled. "Someday."
"Like hell I will," Doc snapped, overhearing. He sleep-induced the last female, then drove a stake into her heart. Marty flung a male over to Mysteria, who skewered him. A moment later, the last soulless vampire fell to Louis. "Judging from the current state of affairs, Biff, it's you who will be mine."
Biff wasn't around to hear Doc's sentiments. He had had himself flown off with his gang. Sighing, he turned with the rest of his friends to deal with quite a few scared and confused people. A number of them looked ready to call 911 and report a crowd of insane murderers on the loose. Families and friends huddled together. "What on earth are you?" one dared to mumble.
"Something you wouldn't believe," Louis answered. He turned to James, acting as a scout. "How many people saw, James?"
"Everybody in the bank - that's 27 - and everybody here - 119 - and a few others. Roughly 159 people. That's not a lot, but I think we can all agree even a few is too many."
Louis nodded. "Magnus, Mysteria and I will deal with the humans who saw. We're the oldest and good at dealing with large crowds. Magnus and myself will take the theater, you can take the bank, Mystie. The rest of you can clean up."
"Yes, Master," Sarah muttered sarcastically.
"I didn't know you could do it on large groups, Matt," Doc said with interest.
"It takes a lot of practice. Incidentally, I saw your attack on Biff up there. Are you hurt?"
"We saw you on fire," added Mysteria anxiously.
"Just my labcoat, which was a total loss anyway," Doc assured them. "I'm fine."
"Good. We wouldn't want to lose our top vampire-killer."
"There's a phrase I thought would never apply to me," Doc mumbled, helping Jay and James put the soulless vampires in a bag. The rest of the gang started cleaning up the theater as Louis, Magnus, and Mysteria began hypnotizing all the witnesses.