Title: And the Saints Boweth Before the King
Author: DOKChairman
Time/Spoilers: Takes place after the events in 'Grave'.
Summary: I could write a summary, but then it would give away everything. So no summary, but I'll give you a hint. The opening I put down for the story is indicative of some of what the story might be about. Not much of a hint, I know, but it's all you're getting.
Disclaimer: Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy own the rights to Buffy the Vampire Slayer and all of its characters. I own nothing except the story, and the Anna Kournikova poster on my bedroom wall. I just got the new Coldplay cd so now I guess I own three things.
Author's Note: First off, let me say that I received overwhelming support from my readers after posting my little insecurity. Thank you all for all the kind things that you said about my story. You people are the reason why I write this story, well you and the preservation of my sanity, but we don't need to get into that. And don't worry; I have no intention of compromising what little artistic integrity I might have by pandering to the superfluous whims of the crazed Spuffy fan. I was just curious that's all. Thanks for all the encouragement.
Author's Note #2: Ghostrider, I have never seen nor even heard of Largo Winch. All the ideas for this story come from my twisted mind. Now that's not to say that I don't take ideas from other people, cause I do. I think it was like a few weeks ago when I was watching the West Wing and Rob Lowe's character said a great line that I think applies to my writing style. He said, "Good writers borrow from other writers, great writers steal from other writers outright." That is so true. If you look carefully, you will see influences from Shakespeare, Lucas (George Lucas that is), and my personal favorite author, Robert Heinlein. On a side note Ghostrider, I just want to tell you that the scene with Xander telling everyone the story of him searching the cabin in the woods in chapter 12 of your story Home and Heart, was one of the funniest things I have ever read. I literally laughed for five minutes straight after reading that, and it still brings a smile to my face whenever I think of it.
Author's Note #3: I have grown tired of all the time travel crap in this story. It is such a pain in the ass trying to make it all make sense. So I have decided to take a step back from it all and concentrate on writing a more fleshed out and deeper story. After this chapter, I have decided to end the short chapter format. I will now fall back on my natural writing style, which anyone who has read my Farscape story knows, means long chapters. I'm talking 10,000 to 20,000 word monsters, so of course that means longer time in between updates. I will do my best to produce a new chapter every two weeks, but I ain't promising anything.
Author's Note #4: Now it is time for the all important episode review. I know that you all love and cherish the little insights that I have, and I don't want to disappoint anyone so here I go. I really don't have much to say. With the exception of all the subtle digs that Xander took throughout this episode, Same Time, Same Place was an ok episode. It wasn't great, but it wasn't bad either. It was certainly an improvement over season six though. The demon was pretty freaky, Dawn was cute and funny, I certainly like her character a lot more this season than ever before, and Xander had some considerable screen time. Now before I finish, I have a quick question for all you readers out there. Is it wrong to be 20 years old and think that Michelle Tractenberg is a hottie? Because if it is, then I feel I should go confess to a priest or something. Anyway, thanks for reading and on to the story.
Chapter 12: Familial Bonds
Dick stared at Xander and waited for his reaction to his bombshell. To his surprise, he wasn't getting one. Xander was just sitting in his chair with a semi-vacant look in his eyes. He wasn't moving; he wasn't really doing anything.
After about five minutes of no reaction from Xander, Dick got frustrated. With a bite to his voice, he asked Xander, "Hey, kid. You in there?"
At first there was no reaction, but after about ten seconds, a violent spasm racked Xander's body and his eyes seem to come back into focus. Xander concentrated on the man in front of him and answered distractedly, "Uh, yeah, I'm good."
This time Dick looked concerned, "Kid, are you all right? What the hell happened to you?"
Xander got sheepish, "Oh, sorry about that. I was just reliving some interesting memories from my past."
Dick said in disbelief, "You're saying that what I just told you applies to events that happened in your past?"
Xander nodded his head, "Oh yeah. Back when I was a teenager, I knew this guy that had a story a lot like yours. Bad guy does bad things, gets chance at redemption, and then sacrifices himself to achieve said redemption. Yada yada yada, next thing you know you're running a detective agency in L.A. Say, your not related to anybody named Angel are you?"
The man asked, "You're talking about the souled vampire Angel aren't you?" At Xander's big grin, the man replied sardonically, "I am not related to anybody named Angel, and even if I was, there is no way that I would ever use as much hair gel as that guy does."
Xander let out a laugh and then said, "Finally! Someone else who's noticed that the man spends just a little too much time working on his hair. You know what I always wondered? How does he do it? I mean the guy's a vampire right, so how does he work on his hair? He has no reflection!"
The man just shook his shoulders, "I don't know kid, magic I guess. I hear there are spells for that kind of thing." The man then stopped talking and he leaned back in his chair. After being silent for a while, his attitude shifted from one of amusement to one of worry and contemplation. Dick asked Xander, "So is that all? Is that the only thing you have to say about what I just told you?"
Xander shrugged. "What do you want me to say? That I'm shocked? Ok, fine, I'm shocked. I can honestly say that I didn't see that coming, but what does it change. So you were the one that created the sword. So what? That fact doesn't change what you're telling me does it?"
Dick said, "No kid it doesn't. I just thought you should know. A way for you to find out a little bit more about me. I was starting to wonder if you were going to just take everything people tell you at face value. Sometimes that's not a good thing."
"Oh I know. Believe me, I know. Don't worry, not everything that people are telling me I trust to be the truth. But there was just something about you that made me trust you long before you ever mentioned your past. I think I started trusting you back when you mentioned you watched football. I figure anybody who watches football can't be all bad, right?" Xander asked Dick.
Dick smiled, "Absolutely kid. There's nothing like a game where the goal is to beat the crap out of each other to breed trust among men."
Xander smiled, "Well there you go, I knew that we would see eye to eye."
Dick's eyes brightened and he smiled a huge smile, "Kid, have I told you yet how much I like you? I think an occasion like this deserves to be celebrated with a drink. How about a cold one? On me."
Xander shrugged his shoulders and Dick moved to stand up out of his chair. He didn't make it. Halfway in between leaving his chair and standing up, he froze. His face went blank, his posture became stiff, and he completely zoned out.
Xander instantly became worried. It was unnatural how Dick was just frozen there in place. It defied the laws of physics. Besides, seeing the empty look on the man's face was really freaky.
Xander got up out of his own chair and hurriedly walked over to stand in front of Dick. Tentatively, Xander stuck his hand out and poked the man with his finger. He got no reaction, so he poked him again. When again he got no reaction, he placed his hand on the man's chest and pushed. As soon as Xander pushed Dick, his eyes came back into focus and Dick went flying backwards, his arms flailing all over the place.
Dick landed in a heap on the floor. Xander looked embarrassed and he quickly moved to help Dick get to his feet. Dick immediately began grumbling, "For Pete's sake kid, what the hell is wrong with you? Haven't you ever seen a guy take a message before?"
Xander said sarcastically, "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know that you were an answering machine. How the hell was I supposed to know what you were doing? You were just standing there, like a statue or something."
Dick began to fussily rearrange his clothes. "You would think after living on the Hellmouth for over twenty years, you would have picked up something useful, but noooo!" Dick stopped messing with his clothes and threw his hands up in the air. He said dramatically, "God, why do I always get stuck with the easily confused ones?"
Xander took offense, "Hey! I am not easily confused, well I am, but that's not my fault. How about a little warning next time, ok?"
Dick sat down heavily in his chair. "Sure kid, I'll make sure to do that. You'll get a warning right about the same time I get one, which is never."
Xander was about to retort with a spectacularly witty remark when he thought better of it, and instead tried to reign in his tendency to make inappropriate remarks. He tried to act mature and decided to ask, "So what was your message?"
Dick's face darkened and he said sadly, "It's time kid. Time for you to go. The Powers feel that they have given you enough time to acclimate yourself to your new memories and that it is time for you to take your test."
Xander's face paled but he tried to act unafraid. "I had a feeling that was what you were going to say. I'd be lying if I said I was ready, but since it seems that I don't have much of a choice, I only have one thing to say. Bring it on."
Dick smiled weakly as he got to his feet. He walked up to Xander and placed his hand on Xander's shoulder. "A word of advice kid. Listen to your gut. It's the best weapon you have. Trust yourself to do what is right. And don't forget your new memories. It is essential that you adjust your thinking to accommodate any new information you might have picked up. Good luck kid. I'll catch you on the flip side."
As soon as Dick finished speaking, Xander found himself falling, much like he had felt before. And like before, Xander found himself standing in a large green field. He was once again topless and was wearing only a pair of lightweight, drawstring workout pants.
Also like before, Xander realized that he was holding a knife. The same work of art that he had found in his hand the last time he had been here. However, unlike last time, nothing had changed from the second time he had faced the creature. That scared Xander. If nothing changed, then how could he be expected to beat the creature?
It was as soon as Xander thought of the creature that he appeared. He looked exactly the same from the last time Xander had faced him. He was a tall demon, at least seven feet, and had a barrel chest. His entire body was like one solid muscle. Xander could easily see the ripples underneath his taut, brown skin. Xander knew that the roughly 300 pound demon standing in front of him was a walking brick wall.
Unfortunately for Xander, unlike most demons that Xander had experience with who were big on brawn but small on brains, Xander knew that the creature in front of him was unusually intelligent for a demon. Which definitely did not work to Xander's advantage. Xander had very few things going for him when it came up to fighting against demons and the like, so being more intelligent than the beings he was fighting was an advantage that he had frequently exploited when dealing with the undead population of Sunnydale, and now he didn't even have that.
He would just have to come up with a new way of defeating the demon, because he had absolutely no intention of failing his test again. Failing twice was two too many times for him. He was good at adapting to different situations, and this situation was going to be no different.
Xander's attention was jarred back to concentrating on the creature when he began speaking. He had a booming voice, an ominous voice. "I am K'omar and I am here to test you Alexander LaVelle Harris. You have been brought before me because the Powers That Be believe that you are capable enough to be a champion. It is my job to see if you are truly ready to face the trials ahead of you."
K'omar stopped talking and began to circle Xander, studying him as he did, as if he was sizing him up. He began talking again as he continued to circle Xander's body. "However, if you wish to avoid a confrontation with me, a confrontation that you will surely lose, then all you must do is accomplish one simple task. Complete this task and your test will be complete. Refuse this task and you must face me in battle. It is your, and only your, decision to make. I have no desire to fight you, but if you deny me what I ask of you then I will have no choice."
Xander stayed silent as he watched the demon slowly circle him. It was very unnerving seeing the massive creature get so close to him. Unfortunately, the only way that Xander knew of getting rid of the creature was too do what he wanted or to fight the thing. Neither option was very appealing.
There was one thing Xander needed to be sure of though before he decided on his course of action. He needed to know what task the demon had for him. He knew from his previous visits with the demon what his special task was, but he was unsure whether or not the task had changed. The last time things had been different, and while this time things seemed the same, Xander wanted to be sure nothing had changed.
Xander spoke up, "What do you want me to do?"
"Your task is quite simple Alexander Harris. All you must do is kill one man. A human man."
Xander shook his head negatively, and he asked K'omar with anger in his voice, "Why?"
The demon did a surprisingly accurate impression of a human shrug. "Is the why really important Alexander Harris. I have told you what you must do in order to save your own life. That should be all the reason you need."
Again Xander shook his head. "No! That is not enough. I need a reason more than that. What has this man done? Why do you want me to kill him? I have to know more!"
K'omar looked carefully at Xander's distraught expression and frowned. "Alright Alexander Harris, I will tell you more. The man I want you to kill is no ordinary man. He has a heart as cold as ice and a soul as black as any demon. He has killed an untold number of people, all for the sake of his own ambitions. He is as evil as any man can be."
At the demon's words, Xander relaxed. It almost sounded like the man deserved to die. If the man was truly as evil as K'omar said he was, then maybe he would be doing the world a favor if he killed the man. After all, if he did then that would mean that he would pass his test and save his own life. All Xander had to do was ignore the annoying voice that he was hearing in the back of his mind telling him that killing another human being was wrong under any circumstances.
The creature continued talking, "However, Alexander Harris, the man I wish for you to kill has not yet committed the acts that I speak of. He is innocent, with a heart as pure as any man and a soul untouched by dark influences. He is as good as any man can be."
The demon paused and finally stopped circling Xander. He walked up to Xander until he was only about three feet away from him. "Of course Alexander Harris, I speak of a future not yet realized. The question you must ask yourself is if you are willing to condemn a man to death for a crime that he has not yet committed, even if you know that he will eventually commit the crime. Will you punish a man for his future deeds by making his present self, his still innocent self, suffer?"
Xander backed away from K'omar and yelled out, "This is freaking crazy! What the hell do you people want from me? I can't make this kind of decision. I shouldn't have to make this kind of decision."
K'omar boomed out, "No Alexander Harris! You must make this decision. If you cannot decide this, then you are not ready to be a champion of the Powers That Be. A champion must sometimes make hard decisions that decide who lives and who dies. A champion must be willing to sacrifice himself in order to protect those that he has sworn to serve. If you are not willing to do these things then this test will end now and you will die."
Xander brought the knife he held in his hand into a defensive position. "I am not going to die, and I am not going to kill someone when they have not done anything wrong."
"But he has Alexander Harris. The man will kill everyone you love. He will seek out the mystical portal to Hell and he will open it. He cares about only two things: death and destruction. Are you prepared to let this man live? Are you prepared to have that on your conscience?" The demon asked.
"If I kill him, then I destroy whatever chance he might have had to change. He is still innocent." Xander pleaded with the demon.
K'omar shrugged his shoulders again and said, "It has been my experience, that human beings do not change. You are creatures that are products of your past, and no matter how hard you try to rebel against your primal instincts, you inevitably fall back on them. This man will kill. It is a certainty."
Xander shoulders slumped and he hung his head. He knew he was giving off the vibe of a defeated man but he didn't care. All his life, he had tried his hardest to follow his convictions and damn the consequences. Right now, his convictions were telling him to tell the demon K'omar to take his test and shove it in a place where the sun doesn't shine. But Xander knew where that would get him, lying on the ground dead. And Xander had a distinct feeling that if he failed his test again he wasn't going to get another try. If he failed his test, then he wouldn't be sent into the past, and that meant he would cease to exist.
Xander liked existing. There was still so much stuff that he wanted to do. Like actually get married and have a family. He wanted to see more of the world, he wanted to prove to everyone who had thought that he was worthless, including his parents, that he could be successful, and he wanted to be there for his friends. If he didn't do what the demon wanted, he would never get to do those things. But if he did do what the demon wanted, he was afraid that he would no longer be the same man that he was. He had seen what killing someone had done to Faith and to his best friend Willow. He didn't want to become them.
Lifting his head up, he asked the demon with hope in his voice, "Is there no alternative?"
The demon let out a breath of air, "There is one. It is one I have already mentioned to you. Fight me and defeat me, and you will have passed."
Xander sighed. It wasn't much of an alternative. But to Xander it seemed like the only choice he had. He would not kill another human being. Oh sure he had said more than once that Warren had gotten what he deserved for killing Tara, but that still didn't change the fact that he thought that it was wrong to kill him. He would not cross the line from the light side to the dark side. He would not give up his humanity.
With resignation in his voice, Xander said, "Then I chose to fight you. I will not kill another man just to save my life, even if he is a bad guy."
The demon stared at Xander searchingly, before shrugging his shoulders. "So be it Alexander Harris." And K'omar, much like last time, charged Xander.
This time though, Xander was more prepared. Waiting until the last second, when K'omar was about to hit him, Xander spun to his left. He swung the knife that he held in a wide arc, and as K'omar went flying past Xander, he struck his back with the knife.
The knife went deep into the demon's back, so deep that the demon's momentum almost prevented Xander from pulling it out in time. K'omar let out a roar of pain that echoed across the field.
Xander, meanwhile, began moving away from the bleeding demon, making sure to keep the knife ready at all times. K'omar stopped his momentum and spun on his large heel. When Xander saw the demon's face, it was consumed by anger. It was the first real emotion that Xander remembered the creature ever showing.
K'omar lunged at Xander with his right fist leading. The speed of the attack got Xander off guard, and K'omar's fist connected with Xander's right shoulder. Xander heard a slight cracking sound and intense pain began shooting all over his right arm. Xander tried to ignore it as best he could. He had more important things to worry about, like K'omar's fist heading directly for his head.
Xander barely ducked under the approaching punch, and used the brief opening that K'omar had provided him. Xander sliced across K'omar's stomach with knife, cutting into the skin and spilling black blood all over Xander's hand. K'omar reacted quickly though and brought his right arm crashing down on Xander's right hand holding the knife. The hit was so strong that Xander had to let go of the knife, and the knife fell down into the grass.
The demon then brought his left knee up into Xander's ribs and then kicked out with his right leg into Xander's right knee. Xander collapsed to the ground, groaning in intense pain, and tried to back away from the demon as fast as he could. Thankfully, K'omar seemed more interested in checking out his wounded stomach than Xander at the moment.
Xander made it about fifteen feet away from K'omar when his body just gave out. He knew that his ribs were more than likely broken, and his knee was definitely useless. He wished that he hadn't dropped the knife; he might have still been able to win if he still had the knife. The knife was surprisingly good at cutting the tough demon hide of K'omar.
K'omar finally seemed finished with his inspection of his stomach and he began marching his way toward Xander. Xander noticed belatedly that K'omar was holding the knife in one of his large hands.
When K'omar was no more than two feet away and he was towering over Xander, he said, "You put forth a valiant effort Alexander Harris, but it was a useless one. I will give you one more chance to decide your fate. Do as I ask of you and all this will all be over. You will no longer feel pain, you will succeed in your test, and you will become a champion."
Xander spoke through gritted teeth, "Yeah, but I'll no longer be me. I don't want to become as bad as the vampires and demons that I fight. I will be no better than they are."
"Then you are decided?" K'omar asked for the final time.
Reluctantly, Xander nodded his head. As K'omar's massive hand began descending down towards Xander's neck, everything began moving in slow motion. Xander knew that this was it, that this was the end of his life. All the things that he had ever regretted doing flashed before his eyes, and all the things that he had wished he could have done but didn't get the chance to popped into his mind.
And for just a brief second, Xander wished he had decided to do what the creature wanted. He wished he had killed the man. Sure, he might have changed, but he would still have been alive. He would have got to live his life. Just as quickly as it appeared, the wish died though. Xander knew that this was for the best. He only wished he could have beaten the demon, but he was too strong. If only he had had the Sword of Life, he might have won.
It was at that instant, the instant where K'omar's hand closed around Xander's neck, that Xander felt something cold and metal in his hand. He felt a rush of energy flow throughout his body, and he could see a pale white light out of the corner of his eye.
Xander instantly knew what he had, and not stopping to question why it had suddenly appeared in his hand, Xander struck K'omar in his leg with the Sword of Life. To both the surprise of K'omar and Xander, the blade sliced clean through, taking off the lower half of K'omar's left leg.
K'omar's hand loosened from around Xander's neck and he fell down on the ground. His leg was shooting out blood, and he brought his two massive hands down to try and stymie the blood flow. That gave Xander the opportunity he needed.
Gaining a new influx of adrenaline, Xander crawled over to atop K'omar and hit him as hard as he could across the face with the pommel of the sword. K'omar became dazed and his head fell back to rest against the ground. Xander got into a kneeling position atop K'omar's chest and raised the sword as high as he could.
Before bringing the sword down for the killing blow, Xander said, "I'm sorry."
For a brief second, K'omar became completely lucid and his eyes focused directly on Xander's sad face. As the sword was coming down, K'omar said his last words, "As am I." And then he changed.
Instead of the seven foot tall, three hundred pound demon K'omar underneath Xander, there was now a man. A human man, about Xander's height, with dark brown eyes and brown hair. The man looked slightly younger than Xander, and was a little bit leaner than he was.
In the few seconds that Xander had to process the change and study the new arrival while he was bringing the sword down, he noticed that the man beneath him bore a striking resemblance to himself. Despite being lankier and younger than he was, Xander could have sworn that he was looking at his reflection.
Unfortunately, there was nothing Xander could do to stop the sword from piercing through the man's chest. His momentum had been too strong and there was almost no time between when he began bringing the sword down and when K'omar had changed.
The sword easily pierced the skin of the man over his heart, and the sword sunk deep into the ground underneath. Blood poured out of the wound and coated Xander's hands. The man let out a whoosh of air and his body convulsed twice before going limp.
It was in total shock over what he had done, that Xander looked at the man's face. The man looked so much like him. The same facial structure, the same hair, and the same eyes. Xander looked deeply into the eyes of the dying man, and saw himself reflected in the brown orbs.
It was at that precise moment, that he realized why the man looked so much like him. Xander knew beyond a shadow of a doubt who the man bleeding underneath him was. Xander knew the saying that the eyes were the windows to the soul, and Xander saw a soul so much like his staring back at him. Except Xander knew that it was not his soul that he saw. The reason why the soul seemed so familiar to him was because it was his son's.
To be continued……………………………
P.S. For a long time I thought about how I wanted to play this. I wasn't sure what I was going to have Xander do that was so horrible, but I knew that it had to be bad. Finally, at around one in the morning it came to me. I would have Xander be forced into killing someone. Now I know some of you might be a little disappointed that that was all Xander was going to be asked to do, but I wanted to stay true to the show. On the show, it has been an overwhelming theme that killing humans is a big no-no. Just look at what happened to Faith, Warren, Willow, Angel and Spike. Besides, Xander has always been one of the most vocal supporters of the black and white viewpoint of the world. I thought it would be interesting if all of sudden Xander had to accept that there were shades of gray.
The surprise at the end was a special twist that I came up with at the last minute. It was a good thing too, because it is a great segue into the two themes/ideas that this story is all about. This story is about redemption and the great philosophical question of does the end justify the means. I hope that you were surprised by my twist, and I want you to tell me what you think. This new plot point will probably be the last one for a while as I focus more on the story and less on trying to shock the reader. I hope that by now I sufficiently have your attention.