Rising of the new Dawn
May 26 2004
One week before the battle
"See you guys tomorrow at school"
Dawn called to her friends as she left the Bronze. The sound of her heals falling on the pavement with each step she took, echoed off the walls of the surrounding buildings. The night was still, too still for Sunnydale, nothing moved, not even the light breeze that touched the side of her face. It was as if time itself was frozen, marking this night for something that would change lives forever. Looking up Dawn found herself coming up to Restfeild cemetery, just two more blocks and she would be home. The night suddenly shifted, she could feel it along her skin, as the unknown threat sent shivers up and down her spine. Looking in the shadows, she strain to see anything, while wishing that Buffy were here with her. Watching, what ever was here was watching her, stalking her. Home was just around the corner now she could make it if she ran. There was a small movement to her right, it had been faint, but she had still picked it up, heart racing in her chest she ran. The sound of crashing bushes met her ears from behind, as she ran. She never looked back to see what hideous creature could be after her, she just ran with a speed she never knew she even possessed. She hit the walkway to her home and did the only thing she could as she flew towards the front door.
"BUFFY, HELP!"
Dawn screamed at the top of her lungs. She had just hit the bottom of the porch when the front door flew open, and her sister ran out, with Spike right behind her.
"Spike get her out of here now, make sure she's inside and safe,"
the slayer said in a deadly calm.
"Buffy, their human pet, you can't deal with them the way you would a demon."
Spike whispered to her as he kept his eyes on the five men that stood surrounding the Summers property.
The sound of air being ripped in two reached their ears, just as Dawn cried out in pain. Turning to her sister, she reached out to her, as her body slowly began to feel heavy and weak. Buffy moved to grab her sisters falling body when the air ripped in two again. The slayer stopped short, as she reached up to pull the dart from her shoulder. Her body became lead as soon as the dart had struck but she pushed it from her mind, Dawn needed her right now, and she would save her. Dropping to the ground beside her sister, she could her the sounds of fighting now, Spike would help save them, he would never let anything happen to Dawn, he promised after all. Buffy's vision began to blur as she tried to lift her self, and her sister from the ground. She knew that if she could just make it into the house they would be safe for the time being. The slayer and her sister never made it into the house that night, as the drug brought the slayer to her knees again, slowly blackness began to cloud her mind as sleep finally took her. He saw her go down, as the men in front of him moved forward as one. Taking a step back he readied himself to protect the girls that he loved. No one would hurt them while he lived they had all been through too much to have it end any other way. The man to his right raised his hand toward him; energy surged through the air, cackling around him. White-hot fire seemed to rip through his body as he fell to the lawn twitching with the electrical current that was now running through his body. Colours he had not seen since he was turned played with vigour behind his eyes, until the colours turned to darkness. He slipped into unconsciousness with one thought running through his head,
"I've failed her again."
Walking past the slayer and the vampire on the lawn, the man who had been in charge of this operation scooped up the young girl, who still remained a nameless face to him. He never asked questions, it wasn't in his best interest if he wished to remain among the living, turning to his team with the girl in his arms, and he smiled.
"Mission accomplished. Lets deliver our objective and go home,"
he said. Buffy and Spike remained on the front lawn as the men and Dawn vanished into the night.
May 27 2004
Sounds began to penetrate through the nothingness that had been her mind for what seemed like forever, pulling her slowly out of her drug induced sleep.
"She's been out for over fifteen hours are you sure the dose wasn't to strong?"
A female voice asked.
"No ma'am, she'll be waking up within the next hour. We just wanted to make sure she remained compliant until we could have her secured for you, after all she is a powerful entity"
a male voice replied.
"Well its good to know that one person has a brain that works around here"
came the woman's voice again. Dawn took that moment to groan, as her eyes fluttered letting in light that shot pain through her head. The two people in the room stopped talking as they turned to look at the child that lay strapped to the small bed in the room.
"Well it's about time she came around. Leave us now!"
The woman said calmly. The sound of a door opening and then closing broke the silence in the small room. Shortly after the door had closed, the sound of a lock clicked into place, locking the woman and the child in the room together. Moaning again, Dawn opened her eyes slower this time, in the hopes that it wouldn't shoot pain through her head this time. She had been wrong, the pain was intense but her eyes were now open, and she let her eyes roam around the room. The walls were the colour of grey slate, along with being bare and windowless, it made the room seem so much smaller. There was no furniture except for the small hard bed Dawn found herself on. No exits, but the door the man had gone through and then locked. Dawn groaned again as she realized she was in trouble yet again. The only difference this time was the fact that she knew she was in more trouble then she had ever been in before.
Her heartbeat raced fiercely within her chest, as she became less disorientated with every minute that swept by. Moving slightly Dawn groaned again as pain shot through her body. The woman that stood staring at her smiled evilly at the pain filled expression on her captives face. Stopping her movements Dawn watched the woman warily,
"this is definitely not of the good"
she thought, while the woman stared at her with cold calculating eyes. Not being able to stand the deadly silence that filled the room any longer Dawn spoke,
"where am I, and why have you brought me here?"
She whispered. Her mouth was dry, and her words seemed to stick inside her throat. The woman laughed, surprising Dawn; for she didn't think this harsh looking person knew how to laugh.
"Do you really want to know the answer to that question little girl?"
Lila said coldly. Dawn shivered as the meaning of those words sunk in to her mind.
"I didn't think so,"
she stated flatly. Dawn looked on horrified at the emptiness in the woman's eyes, she had seen eyes like that once before, well not really because those were the memories created by the monks that made her human. But still, they were memories even if she had not really been there, those eyes were the same as the demon Angelus, only her eyes seemed to be more soulless if that was even possible. You ether had a soul or you didn't, there weren't any in betweens, and Dawn felt sick with the realization that they meant to do her harm. There was no doubt in her mind, that this woman was going to use her as the key again, and Buffy wouldn't be able to stop it. The world would lose this time, she already knew it in her heart to be true, and all because she had been brought into existence. She closed her eyes, as tears began to fall, and the woman who watched her smiled. Pain was a living breathing thing, and Lila meant to bring it and much more to the world, starting with the small sweet girl that lay strapped to the bed in front of her. Turning she left her to wonder at her fate, she still had much to do before the ritual to harness the girls power. The sound of the lock being put in to place echoed through the small room, as Dawn tried to withdraw into herself, maybe there pain and grief would not be able to touch her.
May 30 2004
The light was dim and flickered eerily; casting shadows on stonewalls of the chamber that lay below the office building of Wolfram and Heart. The girl had been brought in over an hour ago, but she had yet to acknowledge that fact, maybe the whipping and the bleeding had been too much for her young body and mind, Lila thought while observing the people in the room. It would begin soon, every thing she had ever worked for was about to pay off, and she, Lila Morgan would be one of the rulers of hell on earth, and it was going to be all because of this small girl, who was now being chained up right within the pentagram they had made with her own blood. Lila smiled as a moan passed her barely parted lips, and her head rolled on her shoulders.
It had taken two days of torture to break the girl into the compliant wreck that she was now, chained in the air by her arms and legs. It had been fun for her, the girls screams had started with the first drop of acid that had hit her bare shoulder, it had been no more then a drop. But the skin had begun to smoke, sizzle and bubble as she screamed in anguish. It went on for hours, an endless array of physical and mental torture, that made Dawn cry out for her family and friends, for her sister who's job it was to protect her because she was the key and Buffy was the slayer. Lila remembered smiling as the child screamed for the sister that would never come to save her, and even if by chance she had come, well there wouldn't be much left of the girl to save, she would have been a lost cause to them all. Dawn had began to sweat excessively after only a half n' hour of her pain ridden experience, but to the surprise of all the senior partners the girl never once lost consciousness through out her ordeal. It was strange and it had given Lila pause through her endless bout of pain that she her self was inflicting. No normal mortal could remain conscious through all of the blows that had been dealt to her. The girl was a puzzle, not just the piece that would fit into their plans, Lila shivered, as a sense of doom seemed to sweep through her. Dawn would bring around the End of Days, but that would just be the beginning, she was sure of it, there was just to much to this girl and her origins that were unknown to everyone in the office, she just hoped that it would not be their downfall in the end.
Lila came out of her thoughts as the gathered witches, began their chanting, it would all work out for now, and that's all she needed to worry about, until something happened to make a change of plans. Turning form the group she left the chamber to retire to her office, it would be 48 hours until the power of the key was in their hands, which would give her time to see to their little Angel and friends problem.
May 31 2004
11:45 pm.
Lila Morgan entered the chamber dressed in style; the world was about to end.
"15 minutes until hell breaks lose, and it's all because of my plan. It's a big pill to swallow, isn't Gavin."
Lila sneered, as she came up behind him.
"Lila, you haven't won yet,"
Gavin whispered while never letting his eyes leave the sight before him.
"Gavin, Gavin, Gavin, I've already won, all this is just paper work now, so if I were you I'd be very, very nice to me, if you know what I mean,"
she said into his ear. Gavin shivered at the hot raspy breath that brushed the side of his neck and ear. His game plan was going to have to change, when this was all over. Lila walked around him, and came to stand on the outside circle of the ritual ground. Lila stared before her at the sight that was striking awe in all the gathered partners. The girl was surrounded by a green flickering haze, and it appeared as if the child slept, so peaceful was her face. But the shiver that ran down the spine of Lila Morgan was one of terror, and not awe. Her body that had been black and blue two days ago was now completely healed. Dawn's skin shimmered giving her an ethereal quality, she looked like an angel sent from heaven and her beauty was 10 times what it had been when she first arrived. The girl was to die after her power was used to start the end of days, but this girl looked anything but near death. She wouldn't be dying anytime soon, and that worried Lila more then anything that could have happened up until now. Lila pulled herself out of her thoughts as she looked at her watch, the clock had just struck 12:00 am, looking up she watched as the chanting died down to silence.
"The calm before the storm,"
Lila smiled to herself.
The earth began to shake and groan around them, many fell to their knees with the shear force of the quake. Lila watched with satisfaction when the restraints that bound the girl shattered into pieces, but to her amazement the girl did not fall to the ground. Dawn remained four feet above the ground as the tremors became worse. Light began to radiate from within her small form outward, leaving those within the chamber speechless. The child took that one moment in time and froze it with the light she had created. Time stood still for what seemed like an eternity, until the light faded and her eyes snapped open, staring blankly before her. Lila let out a gasp as the earth ceased its movements, but it was not for that small fact, no it was for the green orbs that stared vacantly at her. The child's eyes had become a pure green mass of shimmering energy and power, drawing life energy from the witches that surrounded her. No one moved or dared to breath as the key obeyed their will, hours seemed to have slip by, but it had only been minutes when the child's body began its decent to the ground, her green shimmering orbs started to dim until the blue-green of her natural eyes remained. She curled up into a ball, as she cried tears of pain, whispering a mantra that echoed off the stonewalls, and gave the observers something to smile about.
"The battle has begun. The end of days is here, and you have won."