Chapter Nine
With Buffy out doing the rounds, Giles and the Scoobies continued to work on finding out all they could about the Saians. Reaching for his third consecutive donut, Xander scanned the pages of the ridiculously thick book with the tiny print. They should know by now to give him the small ones. Possibly with pictures. Taking a bite if the treat, some of the jelly spilled out the end and dribbled onto the page.
"Don't eat over the books," Giles scolded wearily.
"They're not worth anything, are they?" he asked through a mouthful.
"What happens if we are in the middle of a dire emergency and can't read how to quell some awesome evil because you've got chocolate all over the blasted pages?"
"Soon there will be blood on your pages," said an unknown voice.
All their eyes turned to the library doors. There stood a young woman, dressed in what looked like a long ceremonial gown. Either side of her were massive demons, dressed in chain mail armour and helmets, wielding maces. Hands on her hips, she surveyed the group.
"The Sonnet Sun. Give it to me," she demanded.
"Hey lady," piped up Xander. "Who the hell are you?"
With narrowed eyes, she glared at him. Snarling, the demons got into an attack stance, swinging their maces above their fearsome heads
"Xander, don't make someone with pet monsters angry," Willow hissed.
"Spare the Watcher. Kill the others," she said simply.
Charging forward, one of the demons lunged for Willow. Oz managed to pull her out of the way of the demon's fist in the nick of time and the two sped off into the stacks. Grunting, the huge but cumbersome creature followed. Weaving in and out of the shelves, they tried to topple one onto it. Pushing with all their might, the bookcase barely shifted a few inches. Once they had given up, Oz peeked out to see where the creature was. He was vaguely aware of when the bookcase began to fall. Before he knew it, he was on the floor, the end of the unit on his arm. With a low groan, he pulled it free. Then he saw Willow, lying underneath it. Sensing the movement, the demon looked around. Oz played dead and the creature retreated.
The other was busy spinning its mace at Xander. The first blow missed, catching the middle of the table and splitting it. Jumping up, Xander ducked under one of the tree trunk arms. Feeling suddenly heroic and stupidly brave, he launched himself onto the demon's back, hanging onto the chain mail. Making ugly noises of confusion, the demon made a few futile swings of its mace. It whirled from side to side, nearly sending Xander across the room. He clung on for dear life and hoped something would happen. It was in that moment it did. He saw the mace fly high in the air, then come backwards towards him and land with a loud clatter on the demon's own head. With a howl, the demon slumped to the floor.
"Big and stupid. A bit like football players."
Giles watched on helplessly. Kiathlica had thrown him, literally, into the cage and locked it. Every time he came near the bars, she would grab his fingers and snap them like twigs. He was fairly sure his index and little finger on his left hand were broken. On hearing one of her minion's howl, she span around and frowned. The boy was rushing up the stairs to help his friends. The other demon began to lurch towards him. Then an arrow soared through the air and plunged into the demon's eye. It stumbled around before crashing into another one of the bookcases. It had been a feat to operate the crossbow, but Giles had managed it. At least he was trapped where the weapons were.
Her reaction was not something he expected. Instead of roaring with anger, she paid no heed to his action and strode up to his office. Something caught her attention inside it. Closing his eyes, he waited for her to bring out the dagger. But what she produced was the book. Standing with one hand behind her back, she looked over the page they had marked.
"Abomination!" she scoffed.
She slammed the book shut and threw it aside.
"Been reading of me, have you?" she said, directly at Xander. "And yet it's not here! You are the Slayer's people and the Slayer has the Sonnet Sun."
Bringing her other hand into view, Xander saw the largest blade they had found. The one that had tennos nus written on it. Angrily, she threw it into the wall, where it stuck. Then she simply stormed out the door hidden in the stacks. For a moment, Xander just stood. Big nasties didn't usually just leave halfway through their destruction. Snapping out of it, he ran back to the cage and unlocked Giles. The Watcher looked as puzzled as he was. Together they lifted the bookcase off of Willow and Oz. The girl had been knocked out by the impact.
"You guys need to get to a hospital," called a male voice.
Rhett made his way up to the stacks. Giving no explanation as to his presence, he scooped up Willow and began to carry her downstairs. Soon they realised that all four of the band were there. The two other men had military, expressionless looks on their faces. Piper looked gravely troubled.
"Are you coming?" asked Rhett hurriedly.
Dumbly, Giles, Oz and Xander followed him downstairs. While he went on with Willow in his arms, the others couldn't help but stop when they reached the other band members.
"What are you guys doing here?" Oz asked Piper.
"There's no time to explain. We'll take you to a hospital, the van's parked outside."
"Oh, the van where we found all the creepy weapons?" said Xander.
"Later," said Everett defiantly.
Buffy walked through the hall on the way to the library. Patrol hadn't been anything out of the ordinary, so she'd just give Giles a brief report then go home. Then she saw that bastard from the band that had attacked her, carrying Willow. Buffy charged forward.
"What the hell have you done to my friend?" she cried. "Just follow, Slayer," he said and rushed past her.
Giles and the others filed out of the library, followed by the rest of Maiden's Kiss. Buffy looked at them all desperately, grabbing Xander to stop him.
"What happened?"
"I'm not that sure myself. Come on, we've got to get them to a hospital."
On the way, Willow had come around, slowly. She found herself in the back of a van. At first she assumed it was Oz's but then she saw him sitting beside her.
"Oz? Who's driving?" she asked.
"It's not my van, Will," he said gently. "You got hurt, we're going to a doctor."
"My head's sore," she complained.
"I know."
With Everett driving and Bryn up front with him, the rest were all piled into the back. Thankfully the van was large and could accommodate them all comfortably. Buffy's steely gaze hadn't left Piper all throughout. Buffy didn't know why, but she blamed her. Something in her bones told her it was in some way the girl's fault.
"So, are you the Brethren?" she asked outright.
"Part of them," Rhett replied, knowing it was time to face up to this. "I am the leader, if you could call it that. We are Saians."
"Yeah, we read all about them. But mostly all you guys harp on about is that damn sword and some great evil."
She leaned in closer to him menacingly.
"Are you after me?" she asked. "That text was written by a demon, so it figures."
"No. We're not demons or vampires, as you suspected on our first encounter. We're human. Though a vastly powerful race, gifted at whatever path we take. That was written by a demon, yes. Haralon, a long and loyal associate of the Saian people."
"Then why did you attack me?"
"I was examining the local monster populous. You just happened to come along. I wanted to see your skills."
"Why?" she demanded to know.
"We're getting ahead of ourselves. I need to explain in full so you understand. When the Saians first came into being, they had two deities, Sonnet Sun and Figure Moon. Both ruled over the Saians and existence was peaceful for many thousands of years. They were potent beings, possessing great powers. But soon, the sharing of power began to eat away at Figure Moon. She was consumed by a craving to rule, lust for greed and hatred for Sonnet Sun. Slowly, she grew evil. That which she had been gifted with to use for good turned to darkness. It became so she would feed off the purity in people, twisting it into hatred to fuel hers. The victim would then be left a hideous figure, only wanting to destroy those still tainted by humanity. Figure Moon was banished, great priests putting magicks around the land to prevent her return. Renamed Kiathlica, or 'Stealer of Purity,' she would brood her forces, taking those that crossed her path. A full attack on the Saians would take her an age to form, such is the power of all our people combined. It was suspected that her hordes were growing vast and that action would need to be taken. I took up my calling of Protector of the Sonnet. For now she has another desire. There is one thing in any of the worlds, one thing alone that can stop her. That whom she ruled with, the Sonnet Sun. Their powers are linked, for they were once sisters to the same purpose and it is that power alone that can quell such an abomination. Kiathlica wants to destroy it."
"So that dagger wasn't this Sonnet Sun?" asked Xander.
"No. Those inscriptions merely dictate their origin. Though that one is very special indeed and must be retrieved. I shall tell you more about that when it is more needed. How you came across them is what I would like to know."
"They were in the van," answered Buffy. "After our fight, we decided to investigate." "I planted them there," said Everett, slight shame in his voice. "I knew you would never go to the Slayer and I understand your reasons why. But this will happen and they needed to begin to find out what."
"It's the end of the world," sighed Giles.
"Not as such, no," answered Rhett. "Kiathlica is here as she knows that the Sonnet Sun is. She will also be able to use the people of a small town to expand her army and defeat the Saians and resume rule. Her power draws all dark things towards it. It is possible that her mere presence may open the Hellmouth. "
With Buffy out doing the rounds, Giles and the Scoobies continued to work on finding out all they could about the Saians. Reaching for his third consecutive donut, Xander scanned the pages of the ridiculously thick book with the tiny print. They should know by now to give him the small ones. Possibly with pictures. Taking a bite if the treat, some of the jelly spilled out the end and dribbled onto the page.
"Don't eat over the books," Giles scolded wearily.
"They're not worth anything, are they?" he asked through a mouthful.
"What happens if we are in the middle of a dire emergency and can't read how to quell some awesome evil because you've got chocolate all over the blasted pages?"
"Soon there will be blood on your pages," said an unknown voice.
All their eyes turned to the library doors. There stood a young woman, dressed in what looked like a long ceremonial gown. Either side of her were massive demons, dressed in chain mail armour and helmets, wielding maces. Hands on her hips, she surveyed the group.
"The Sonnet Sun. Give it to me," she demanded.
"Hey lady," piped up Xander. "Who the hell are you?"
With narrowed eyes, she glared at him. Snarling, the demons got into an attack stance, swinging their maces above their fearsome heads
"Xander, don't make someone with pet monsters angry," Willow hissed.
"Spare the Watcher. Kill the others," she said simply.
Charging forward, one of the demons lunged for Willow. Oz managed to pull her out of the way of the demon's fist in the nick of time and the two sped off into the stacks. Grunting, the huge but cumbersome creature followed. Weaving in and out of the shelves, they tried to topple one onto it. Pushing with all their might, the bookcase barely shifted a few inches. Once they had given up, Oz peeked out to see where the creature was. He was vaguely aware of when the bookcase began to fall. Before he knew it, he was on the floor, the end of the unit on his arm. With a low groan, he pulled it free. Then he saw Willow, lying underneath it. Sensing the movement, the demon looked around. Oz played dead and the creature retreated.
The other was busy spinning its mace at Xander. The first blow missed, catching the middle of the table and splitting it. Jumping up, Xander ducked under one of the tree trunk arms. Feeling suddenly heroic and stupidly brave, he launched himself onto the demon's back, hanging onto the chain mail. Making ugly noises of confusion, the demon made a few futile swings of its mace. It whirled from side to side, nearly sending Xander across the room. He clung on for dear life and hoped something would happen. It was in that moment it did. He saw the mace fly high in the air, then come backwards towards him and land with a loud clatter on the demon's own head. With a howl, the demon slumped to the floor.
"Big and stupid. A bit like football players."
Giles watched on helplessly. Kiathlica had thrown him, literally, into the cage and locked it. Every time he came near the bars, she would grab his fingers and snap them like twigs. He was fairly sure his index and little finger on his left hand were broken. On hearing one of her minion's howl, she span around and frowned. The boy was rushing up the stairs to help his friends. The other demon began to lurch towards him. Then an arrow soared through the air and plunged into the demon's eye. It stumbled around before crashing into another one of the bookcases. It had been a feat to operate the crossbow, but Giles had managed it. At least he was trapped where the weapons were.
Her reaction was not something he expected. Instead of roaring with anger, she paid no heed to his action and strode up to his office. Something caught her attention inside it. Closing his eyes, he waited for her to bring out the dagger. But what she produced was the book. Standing with one hand behind her back, she looked over the page they had marked.
"Abomination!" she scoffed.
She slammed the book shut and threw it aside.
"Been reading of me, have you?" she said, directly at Xander. "And yet it's not here! You are the Slayer's people and the Slayer has the Sonnet Sun."
Bringing her other hand into view, Xander saw the largest blade they had found. The one that had tennos nus written on it. Angrily, she threw it into the wall, where it stuck. Then she simply stormed out the door hidden in the stacks. For a moment, Xander just stood. Big nasties didn't usually just leave halfway through their destruction. Snapping out of it, he ran back to the cage and unlocked Giles. The Watcher looked as puzzled as he was. Together they lifted the bookcase off of Willow and Oz. The girl had been knocked out by the impact.
"You guys need to get to a hospital," called a male voice.
Rhett made his way up to the stacks. Giving no explanation as to his presence, he scooped up Willow and began to carry her downstairs. Soon they realised that all four of the band were there. The two other men had military, expressionless looks on their faces. Piper looked gravely troubled.
"Are you coming?" asked Rhett hurriedly.
Dumbly, Giles, Oz and Xander followed him downstairs. While he went on with Willow in his arms, the others couldn't help but stop when they reached the other band members.
"What are you guys doing here?" Oz asked Piper.
"There's no time to explain. We'll take you to a hospital, the van's parked outside."
"Oh, the van where we found all the creepy weapons?" said Xander.
"Later," said Everett defiantly.
Buffy walked through the hall on the way to the library. Patrol hadn't been anything out of the ordinary, so she'd just give Giles a brief report then go home. Then she saw that bastard from the band that had attacked her, carrying Willow. Buffy charged forward.
"What the hell have you done to my friend?" she cried. "Just follow, Slayer," he said and rushed past her.
Giles and the others filed out of the library, followed by the rest of Maiden's Kiss. Buffy looked at them all desperately, grabbing Xander to stop him.
"What happened?"
"I'm not that sure myself. Come on, we've got to get them to a hospital."
On the way, Willow had come around, slowly. She found herself in the back of a van. At first she assumed it was Oz's but then she saw him sitting beside her.
"Oz? Who's driving?" she asked.
"It's not my van, Will," he said gently. "You got hurt, we're going to a doctor."
"My head's sore," she complained.
"I know."
With Everett driving and Bryn up front with him, the rest were all piled into the back. Thankfully the van was large and could accommodate them all comfortably. Buffy's steely gaze hadn't left Piper all throughout. Buffy didn't know why, but she blamed her. Something in her bones told her it was in some way the girl's fault.
"So, are you the Brethren?" she asked outright.
"Part of them," Rhett replied, knowing it was time to face up to this. "I am the leader, if you could call it that. We are Saians."
"Yeah, we read all about them. But mostly all you guys harp on about is that damn sword and some great evil."
She leaned in closer to him menacingly.
"Are you after me?" she asked. "That text was written by a demon, so it figures."
"No. We're not demons or vampires, as you suspected on our first encounter. We're human. Though a vastly powerful race, gifted at whatever path we take. That was written by a demon, yes. Haralon, a long and loyal associate of the Saian people."
"Then why did you attack me?"
"I was examining the local monster populous. You just happened to come along. I wanted to see your skills."
"Why?" she demanded to know.
"We're getting ahead of ourselves. I need to explain in full so you understand. When the Saians first came into being, they had two deities, Sonnet Sun and Figure Moon. Both ruled over the Saians and existence was peaceful for many thousands of years. They were potent beings, possessing great powers. But soon, the sharing of power began to eat away at Figure Moon. She was consumed by a craving to rule, lust for greed and hatred for Sonnet Sun. Slowly, she grew evil. That which she had been gifted with to use for good turned to darkness. It became so she would feed off the purity in people, twisting it into hatred to fuel hers. The victim would then be left a hideous figure, only wanting to destroy those still tainted by humanity. Figure Moon was banished, great priests putting magicks around the land to prevent her return. Renamed Kiathlica, or 'Stealer of Purity,' she would brood her forces, taking those that crossed her path. A full attack on the Saians would take her an age to form, such is the power of all our people combined. It was suspected that her hordes were growing vast and that action would need to be taken. I took up my calling of Protector of the Sonnet. For now she has another desire. There is one thing in any of the worlds, one thing alone that can stop her. That whom she ruled with, the Sonnet Sun. Their powers are linked, for they were once sisters to the same purpose and it is that power alone that can quell such an abomination. Kiathlica wants to destroy it."
"So that dagger wasn't this Sonnet Sun?" asked Xander.
"No. Those inscriptions merely dictate their origin. Though that one is very special indeed and must be retrieved. I shall tell you more about that when it is more needed. How you came across them is what I would like to know."
"They were in the van," answered Buffy. "After our fight, we decided to investigate." "I planted them there," said Everett, slight shame in his voice. "I knew you would never go to the Slayer and I understand your reasons why. But this will happen and they needed to begin to find out what."
"It's the end of the world," sighed Giles.
"Not as such, no," answered Rhett. "Kiathlica is here as she knows that the Sonnet Sun is. She will also be able to use the people of a small town to expand her army and defeat the Saians and resume rule. Her power draws all dark things towards it. It is possible that her mere presence may open the Hellmouth. "