Family Ties II

Chapter 14

A Father's Rage

Seth groaned as his scrambled senses slowly returned to him. He was acutely aware of a petite form huddled beneath him, his lithe body spread across the much smaller person. The smell was definitely feminine and he could detect the telltale rise and fall of breathing, so she was still alive. Forcing his aching arms to push him up, Seth stared at a tangled mop of strawberry blond hair that was matted on one side with dried blood. As he became more aware of his being, Seth recognized the tiny creature underneath him and he smiled wickedly.

"Well, what have we here?" he whispered into Faith's ear and her body recoiled at his intimate murmurs though she was still unconscious. "Looks like I've got you where…I want you…" he said, the last part trailing off as his eyes had looked up to survey his surroundings. When he saw the bodies strewn about the floor and the smoke filtering through the air, the memory of the last few minutes slammed into the forefront of his mind.

"Fuck," he uttered in disbelief, which soon became rage when he remembered why he was on top of Faith. "You bitch!" He spat and slammed his fist into her kidney. The force of the blow was enough to awakened the slayer and she groaned in pain. The noise had a two-fold effect on the vampire, arousing him as well as filling him with an unkempt rage and he wasn't sure which was controlling his actions as his fists rained blow after blow into her lower back and neck, all the while his lower body pressed intimately against her.

"You like that, you little whore?" her roared, his eyes bleeding with the red and gold of his demon. "You like the pain," punch, "don't worry," punch, "because I will give it to you just how you like it."

Seth's lengthened nails ripped through the flimsy shirt that Faith wore, tearing into her skin as well. The pain lanced through her and she screamed, though it was more out of terror and helplessness as Seth dug his fingers into her hips, pulling her against him.

"Please, no," she whimpered, the shame of what he was about to do coupled with her injuries immobilizing her desire to fight back. "Please, Seth…" He silenced her with a punch to the back of the head and, without warning, sank his teeth into her neck.

The pain of his fangs ripping her flesh was exquisite and Faith fought the almost irresistible urge to black out. But she knew she had to stay awake, no matter her desire to be unconscious as Seth's hands ravaged her already bruised body. Buffy and the others would need her and, if that meant to be at the mercy of Seth until they recovered, then so be it.

The anger and frustration drove Seth's innate need to inflict injury upon the slayer. After all, it was her fault that the ritual had been interrupted. At least in the haze of his mind she had interrupted it. Though he remembered Jennifer's words that nothing could stop the ritual once it had begun, he had doubted those words when her shrill cry thundered through his ears just as he tackled Faith to the ground. It was unlike anything he had ever heard and all Seth could think of was that whatever Faith had thrown into the circle had disrupted the energies that had been flowing through his lover. Yes, Faith would pay. First with her dignity then with her life.

Seth pulled away from Faith's neck violently, the sickening sound of ripping flesh catapulting through the air. He lowered himself on top of the whimpering slayer and grabbed a handful of hair, yanking her head up.

"You know what I'm gonna do to you for this?" He whispered darkly into her ear. "I'm gonna hurt you so bad baby that, by the time I'm done with you, I'd be surprised if you'll ever be able to look anyone in the eye again." He shoved her face into the ground, shuddering at the crack of her skull as he fisted the fabric of her pants in one hand.

"Tell me when it hurts," he taunted and motioned to rip the material away but a faint moan pulled his attention from Faith.

"Jennifer?" He called out as his eyes focused on the nude figure in ritual area. The last time he had looked, there had been three figures there, though two were more astral than solid. Slowly, he lifted himself off of Faith and walked cautiously over to the bronzed flesh woman, the creak of his boots thunderous in the tomblike club.

After what seemed like hours, he finally reached the unmoving form and kneeled down beside her. With his hand shaking, Seth reached for Jennifer and when he touched her shoulder a warmth unlike anything he had ever felt coursed through him. His demon screamed for him to run but the man in him gravitated towards the beauty of his love, the only woman who had ever held his heart.

Emerald.

***

The eerily familiar scent of blood was what brought Spike back to consciousness. He fought to grasp the events of the last few minutes. The last thing he remembered was tugging violently at the chains before an overwhelming…something slammed into him, rendering him unconscious. He pushed himself from the floor noting that the chains were no where to be found. He brushed aside the thought of why quickly, as the pounding in his head was not up for sharing brain space. His fingered the back of his head to the source of the pain.

"Bloody hell," he cursed when he saw the blood that coated his pale fingertips. He instinctively went to pat the injury again but he caught movement out the corner of his eye. He whirled toward the source while at the same time adorning his game face, his body coiled for attack.

He watched as Seth walked over to Dawn--hey, where was the other woman? Didn't matter, all that mattered was that the bastard was touching his Nibblet. A growl reverberated in his chest and he took two steps toward the unsuspecting demon when he caught sight of Faith strewn about, her clothes ripped, laying deathly still a few feet away from the still unmoving Jct'ars. He sniffed the air and his undead heart constricted at what he smelled.

It was her blood that had roused him from oblivion and it was her blood that now screamed for him as her voice in his head had done earlier. But this time, it was different. This was not a plea for help but a call for solace. Spike didn't have to see the wound or listen to her pulse to know what was wrong. The scent of her blood told him everything.

And it told him that Faith was dying.

***

She had known the moment Seth's fangs ripped a chunk of her flesh away that he had been careless. As many times as he had drank from her, never had he been so primal, even during his…

Faith closed her eyes tightly, attempting to shut out the images of him on top of her, in her, soiling her body and soul. Somehow, despite the weakness that pervaded through her veins, Faith laughed humorlessly.

Here I am, bleeding to death and the only thing I can think of is the things that sick bastard did to me, she thought bitterly. There had been so many good times, seventeen years of them, to be exact, that should have obliterated the horrors she had faced during the last six years of fighting Gabriel's forces. But her mind was too tired to conjure up the images of days past and instead settled for the sweet, assuring voice of her father.

"Bitlet," Spike whispered and Faith opened her eyes.

"Daddy?" She murmured and though her strength was fading, lifted her hand to the one that caressed her cheek. "Daddy is it you?"

"Yeah, 'let, it's me," he said, unable to keep the emotion from his voice. He pulled off his duster and wrapped it around her shoulders as he brought her to his lap.

Tears of joy and heartache poured from Faith's cerulean green orbs as she looked upon her father. She had waited two years to lay eyes upon him and, now that they had bonded once more, she was being taken away from him.

She watched with hooded eyes as Spike ripped his shirt off and pressed it to her neck to staunch the bleeding. She winced at the pressure but remained. Faith stared into his tear-filled eyes and marveled at how they could be terrifying and in the next instance, loving and soothing. She had no answer and, instead, smiled sweetly at him.

"I love you, Daddy," she whispered, fighting to stay awake. If she closed her eyes for too long, it would all be over. Already the blood loss was too severe as her main artery was shredded. At least I get to die in his arms, she thought weakly.

"Baby, it's gonna be all right, you'll see," he soothed though the panic in his voice was obvious.

"You don't have to lie, Daddy," Faith assured, "I'm a big girl now. Been fighting the forces of darkness for six years running. I know what death's like."

"No you don't," he whispered harshly. "Neither you nor your Mum have any idea what true death is. Death is me," he murmured and Faith barely made out what he had said.

"Don't be a git, Daddy," she said before a fit of coughing lanced through her and several gobs of dark blood spilled from her lips. Spike brushed the blood from her lips and stared as it mixed with his. So sweet, this life giving substance, so rich and empowering. It was what gave his dead flesh the strength to carry on for a hundred years and it would power him until his bones were dust. No, she was wrong; he was death. Always had been and always would be.

"I'm not wrong, Daddy. Look, as much as I love discussing the philosophy of things with you, I don't have much time…" she coughed loudly again and a sob caught in the vampire's throat.

"Don't say that, Bitlet, you can't…I…can't lose you…won't let you…" he couldn't finish as the tears poured from his eyes and Faith could only watch, her heart breaking at the sight of her daddy, her hero, broken and in tears.

"Daddy," Faith demanded, her voice brokering no argument, "it's not about me anymore. I already told you, it's too late for that. But not for the others…" her eyes glazed over and Spike knew she was almost gone.

"Faith," he said as panic set in. Having no other course of action, he slapped her hard in the face. "Wake up, baby. We need you. Me and your Mum. Don't you wanna see your Mum again?"

At that her eyes fluttered open and she smiled weakly. "You have to take care of her and the others. Make sure she and Dawn…"

"Dawn," Spike whimpered and stole a glance at Seth, whose back was turned. The rage bubbled inside of him, at himself and at Seth. He had failed Dawn, they all had. They hadn't performed the counter spell and his Nibblet was lost forever.

"No, she's not," Faith muttered. On his confused look, she reiterated. "Dawn's not lost, Daddy. I think…I think I did something to help her."

"What did you do?"

"The…the same thing she gave me…a choice…"

***

Seth smiled warmly when he saw his love's eyelashes flutter and her breathing pick up. She moaned several times and Seth knew she was on the verge of waking up. He tenderly brushed a lock of black hair from her forehead and relaxed himself enough to take in her features.

She was every bit as beautiful as Emerald—well, that was expected, considering that she was Emerald. Everything from the bronze skin to the dark hair was intact. Her skin was alight with the effervescent glow that often accompanied Emerald's change in moods and Seth stroked the flesh of her arm, content in her supernatural warmth. His cold heart thawed when he felt her lean into his touch.

"Em, baby," he cooed as her lips parted slightly. "Wake up, baby. It's me, Seth." Slowly—agonizingly slow for him—Emerald's eyes fluttered once more until he saw a slip of green through the slit between her cracked eyelids.

"S…Seth…?" she managed, her voice disjointed.

"Yeah, it's me. Are…how do you feel?" His hand slid to the small of her back as she forced herself to sit up. Her delicate hand came up to massage her temples.

"Fine…I think. A little power dizzy but—all things considered…" she trailed off as her eyes adjusted to the semi-darkness and she gasped in horror.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Seth asked, not bothering to hide his concern.

"All…all these people…" a single tear escaped down her cheek and Seth's apprehension grew. "I…I killed them..."

"You had to, to come back to me, you had to."

She looked at him, the confusion evident in her eyes. He brushed his knuckles across her cheeks and caught the glint of silver around her neck but he ignored it, focusing on her dazed eyes.

"I can feel them…their lives inside me," her brows knitted, "and it's not just them, it's everybody. Everything."

"Everything?"

"Everything," She reiterated and her eyes traveled to the two blondes sitting together. "And everyone."

***

Spike's eyes studied the increasingly pallid face of the young woman in his arms. Here she was, a surrogate daughter he had come to know and love with the ferocity of someone from his loins in the span of two days. And, just like he had with Buffy, he could do nothing but watch her die.

Faith's short breaths had dropped to shallow pants and her eyes refused to stay open. Her hand had fallen away from Spike's, as she no longer had the strength to grip it. His distress bled into her mind and that had been the only thing keeping her afloat in the realm of the living. If I was a vampire, I could just latch on to his vein and drink away, she thought as the haze built a fence around her mind. I guess this is the end…she thought until a clear thought blazed through her darkening state. Something her father had said about blood relationships between a vampires and its childe.

"Daddy," She called weakly.

"Yes, Bitlet?" Spike replied. He fought to keep his voice calm as he listened to her weakening pulse filter through his ears.

"I…need for you…to…feed…me."

"Feed you?" He questioned after a moment of utter bewilderment.

She nodded and forced the sluggish words from her lips. "Your blood…it can…it can help…"

"How, baby?"

She smiled at his confusion before she replied. "Just…like a childe and sire our…my father's blood…it can…it can heal me."

Spike pieced together her broken words and understood what she was saying. Being the daughter of a vampire, it made sense for that parent's blood to be a sort of all-purpose elixir, just as Angel's blood had been to him. The only problem was that it was necessary to have a direct blood link for it to work correctly and he only assumed that that would be true even more so with a half-vampire as Faith was. Spike sighed and, for the first time in decades, he truly wished for Angel.

"I…it won't help, Bitlet. It would only work if you had a direct blood connection to me, not the cross-familial bond we have now…" the apology that he wanted to express was silenced by the tender feel of her fingers on his lips. Faith stared into the stormy eyes of her father and smiled--all the love and tenderness she had ever felt for him, the goodbye she never got to say, radiated through to him.

"I know," was all she said and Spike narrowed his eyes, searching hers for the confidence of her tone. It didn't take long for him to find it, and when he did, the surge of joy that exploded within him was only hampered by his need to keep her alive.

Finally, after all they had been through in the last few days, Spike finally knew.

And it had only taken one unguarded look for him to see the truth.

***

Buffy awoke when she heard a familiar voice waft through the air. She tried to move but her body had other ideas. She groaned inwardly, careful not to alert anyone of her condition. Stretching out her senses, she felt the presence of two vampires close by. One was definitely Spike and she thanked God that he was still alive. The second vampire, however, she was not too happy was still undead and kicking.

That bastard, she swore as another jolt of electric pain seared her. The damage Seth had done to her arm was quite severe and she knew she'd be out of action for at least a week while it healed. But I'll be in commission long enough to dust him, she thought bitterly.

"Everyone?" His voice sounded and Buffy assumed he was talking to Jennifer.

"Yes, everyone," was the reply and Buffy bit her lip to prevent her from screaming out Dawn's name. She's alive, the slayer thought joyously and cracked an eye open just enough to take in the scene before her.

Seth had his back turned to her and his body position shielded her from viewing Dawn. She could have maneuvered around but didn't want to turn Seth's attention to her in the current state that she was in. So, Buffy opted to remain still and listen in on the conversation.

"Emerald, did it work?" Buffy was surprised at the concern in Seth's voice but discounted it as his desire to see the First now Enjoined wreck havoc across the world. And that was when it hit her.

They had come here, not to stop the ritual, but to perform the barrier spell to keep Dawn's personality in tact. She knew Giles and the others hadn't succeeded though she blamed herself. She had failed Dawn. As the realization sunk in, she couldn't stop the tears that poured from her eyes.

**

Not wasting a moment to contemplate the startling revelation, Spike pushed up the sleeve of the shirt he had worn underneath his red button down, his other hand still holding Faith gingerly in his lap. Putting his bare arm to his lips, he vamped out and sliced open his vein. He watched the blood seep to the surface and rushed it to his daughter's lips.

"Faith, baby," he cooed to the barely conscious slayer, "here you go. Drink it up, Bitlet." He nudged her head forward to his wrist and his eyes widened when he saw her teeth lengthen before she latched onto his wrist.

For a vampire, feeding was everything. Of course, draining the life essence of a human was intoxicating but it could not compare to the explosion of ecstasy one felt when drinking the blood of one's Sire. The converse was also true; allowing a childe to feed from you was just as powerful, just as orgasmic. And there was nothing like it for Spike, except the blood of a slayer.

As he watched Faith milk his veins, he marveled at how this moment made all the other bloodlettings pale by comparison. True, the same heady rush swept over him as well as the invariable need to hold this child in his arms forever. But it was not a need based on lust or anything sexual but one of indescribable love. It was a need to protect and to feel this tiny woman in his arms, a woman that he had helped create. He felt a smile etch his face and, despite the amount of blood she ingested from him, Spike actually felt invigorated. He sensed his wounds healing at the same time his strength began to return and he couldn't help but smile at it all.

The smile quickly faded as he saw them and he had to restrain himself from pulling away from Faith.

One by one, images not his own assaulted his mind with an animalistic fervor. He watched helplessly as Faith saw Buffy stake him, the emotional pain rushing him in waves. But the nearly crippling grief was nothing compared to the anger Faith directed towards Buffy nor the subsequent guilt that wracked the young Summers as she turned her back on her mother's cries. He had known about this but to experience them firsthand was almost overwhelming. The pain that Faith held inside was more than he could have imagined and his love for her grew all the more at her strength to fight through this. She had fought through the worst possible…

His thoughts about the previous images were shattered when he was bombarded with the most horrible thing he could imagine.

He watched from Faith's eyes as Seth stalked into the room that first time, his eyes raping her before he touched her flesh. But when he did touch her—God! —The horror! She fought in vain as he "punished" her, teasing her about the things he would do before he did them. His stomach lurched as Seth…violated her with his body and words. He cringed when the silver blade sliced down her face and shook as Seth poured holy water into the gaping wounds. Over and over, images of the vampire torturing Faith, drinking from her…violating her in ways even at his worst Spike had never done, assailed Spike and he violently pulled his arm away from her lips. He didn't even feel the flesh rip away from his arm—all he could see and feel was the shame and disgust Faith carried with her after being in the hands of the monster that had bested him and nearly killed Buffy.

"Go to her," Faith whispered. Spike looked down at her, his face stained with newly shed tears. Her eyes were closed though her lips were twisted in an almost wry smile. Shaking himself from Faith's horrible past, he checked the wound on her neck and sighed in relief when he saw that it was nearly healed.

"It worked, Bitlet," he choked out through the emotional lump fixed in his throat. You're all better."

"Well," she said and opened her eyes. For a moment they sparkled, completely blue, before returning to their original mixture. "I wouldn't say that."

Despite the situation, Spike chuckled and planted a loving kiss on her forehead. He felt the strength of Faith's grip as she took his hand away from her and sat up gingerly.

"Oh, yeah. I'm a long way from all better," she turned back to him, a look of complete love and devotion blanketing her features. "But I'll live, thanks to you."

Spike moved to speak but was silenced when Faith placed a chaste kiss on his lips before her arms wrapped around his neck and she laid her head on his shoulders. "I love you so much, Daddy. Don't leave me again."

The confession was too much and Spike crushed his little girl's body into his, holding her as if she would disappear any moment. He shut his eyes tightly, inhaling the scent of her that was a combination of him, Buffy and something all of her own.

Although he was cold by nature, Faith felt the warmth of her father's embrace seep into her bones. It had been so long since she had felt this safe, this protected and she didn't want to let go. But she knew she had to and when Spike's body stiffened in her embrace, she gently pushed him away.

When she looked in his eyes, she saw the barely contained fury and didn't need to turn around to see what he was looking at. Faith cupped Spike's cheek and he turned, his love for her sliding over the fury.

"Be careful," she said, "I'll need a few more minutes before I can make a go at him."

Spike nodded, not trusting himself to speak. He rose quietly, and moved away from her but before he could get too far, she touched him on the shoulder.

"Don't kill him," she said as he turned around and Spike stared at her incredulously. Before he could say anything, she added to her statement, a malevolent grin staining her youthful face. "Save that particular pleasure for me."

"That's my girl," Spike beamed before stalking towards the man who had desecrated his daughter in every conceivable way. He knew that Seth was stronger and faster than him, but that didn't matter. The rage coursing through Spike would propel Spike through the fight and, 'Mark' be damned, the bastard was going to die.

They say that 'hell hath no fury like a woman scorned'. Spike only laughed at that. Though it might be true, a father's rage towards those that dare harm his family had no equal. And he was set on showing Seth just how infinitesimal Hell's torment was compared to the fury that flowed within his veins.

Spike had promised Faith that he wouldn't kill Seth but as he got closer to him, he hoped she wouldn't be too upset with him. He wouldn't kill the demon but, on the other hand, by the time he was finished, there wasn't going to be much of Seth left to kill.

And if Faith was mad at that, then that was fine by him.

***Only two more chapters to go. Spike and Seth go at it again in Sacrifices.

***Afterwards, you will be graced with One Last Breath…

***There will most likely be an epilogue as well.