[At the pier. The warehouse is about 200 feet long, 80 feet wide and 60 feet high. Cordy's arms are in shackles against the back (West) wall, which is closest to the water. The Beast walks in through the front door at the opposite (East) end.]
CORDY: What took you so long?
BEAST: I knew you were on my side.
CORDY: Is this your plan? Kill me with smugness?
BEAST: You're no good to me dead. [Sticks a finger in between her ribs. Pokes around. Does it again. Cordy cries out in pain] They can't hear you. Even if they could, it would not matter. [Beast steps back. He looks a bit puzzled. He thrusts the four fingers on his right hand into her stomach. She screams in agony.] I thought you'd be a screamer. Angelus always loved a screamer. [He takes his hand out. Cordy's in great pain.] They did a very good job of hiding it in you. This will take longer than I planned. Which is very bad. For you. [flies up and out the roof. Cordy's alone and seriously injured.]
[In Giles's car, on the way to the port]
CONNOR: Why do they call you Watcher?
GILES: A Watcher trains the Slayer, hones their skills.
CONNOR: You teach them about vampires?
GILES: Yes, among other things.
CONNOR: You're English, right?
GILES: Yes I am. Why?
CONNOR: So was Holtz. He's the one who taught me how to hunt and fight. He also taught me about vampires. But he didn't watch. He fought, until he was much older than you are. Do you fight?
GILES: Only when I have to. Which is quite often, actually.
CONNOR: Then why do they call you Watcher?
LORNE: We just seem to be going around in circles.
CONNOR: Is it because you watch the Slayers when they fight?
GILES: Yes. We've already covered that.
CONNOR: Why don't you help them?
GILES: That's like asking why Lorne doesn't help you when you're fighting. No offense.
LORNE: None taken, cupcake. I'm a lover, not a fighter.
GILES: The Slayer is many times stronger than I am. Stronger than any man.
CONNOR: Stronger than me?
GILES: I'm not sure. Hopefully it will never come to that. [GIles briefly envisions Buffy clobbering Connor.] They are, to use your father's pompous parlance, champions of champions.
CONNOR: I heard you talking to Wesley in the courtyard.
GILES: You couldn't have. I saw you inside.
LORNE: Vampire ears.
GILES: Right. One of your many inherited vestigial traits.
CONNOR: He said you don't get a new one till the old one dies. But you don't know who the new one will be, so you're finding all the girls who could be next. What happens to the others?
GILES: Most Potentials never become Slayers.
CONNOR: But they still fight vampires.
GILES: No. That would be suicide. They lack Slayer power.
CONNOR: So do Cordy and Fred. So do Wes and Gunn. But they fight. So did Holtz. Everyone I know fights. None of them are Slayers. Sounds like where you're come from Slayers are the only ones who fight. Doesn't make sense.
GILES: Connor, I understand your point of view. But you need to realize that your point of view is extremely limited. You've been under attack since the moment you were born. You've had to fight just to survive. No one else can say that.
LORNE: What about that girl with the phony memories? The precious thing Buffy died to save from the Goddess of Tackiness. Sounded like she had it pretty rough. Uh, Rupert, this our exit. [Giles slams on the brakes and swerves into the off-ramp.]
GILES: Well. That is a provocative if deeply flawed analogy. [Giles is spooked by what Lorne was implying. The he remembers his image of Buffy thrashing Connor. Realizes this is what would happen Connor ever tried to get with Buffy's kid sis. The image comforts him.]
[Gwen enters the warehouse.]
GWEN: What you doing here?
CORDY: What am I? – they sent YOU? I don't believe this!
GWEN: You're hurt.
CORDY: Ya think? [Gwen rushes over]
GWEN: Whoa. You're hurt bad. Who did this?
CORDY: Take a wild guess.
GWEN: The Beast? He's the one who put you here?
CORDY: Gosh. You're smarter than you look. Course that's pretty easy in your case. Why are you here? Did Angel tell you?
GWEN: I'm supposed to meet a client here.
CORDY: Oh well. Sorry to disappoint.
GWEN: I was gonna save you, but if this is how you'll show your thanks –
CORDY: How were you going to do that?
GWEN: How do you think? [takes off left glove]
CORDY: Sorry. I forgot you're a walking jumper cable. [she did remember who Gwen would like to jump.] Uh oh. You better hurry. He's coming. [Gwen puts a finger to one of the chains in order to melt it. Right when she makes contact, the Beast drops in through the roof. He lands with a might thud. Gwen turns to face him. She pulls off her other glove.]
GWEN: I've been waiting the get my hands on you. [She puts her hands on his chest and shocks him. He hardly notices.]
BEAST: You make sparks. Cute. [Gwen backs away in fear. The Beast knocks her out with a left hook. He grabs her, and tosses her headfirst through the back wall. Gwen tumbles unconscious into the water. Her fingertips send electricity coursing through the saltwater. The self-electrocution causes Gwen to regain consciousness. She reaches her hands out of the water, kicks her way to the pier, grabs hold and pulls herself back on dry land. She's still a bit dazed from the blow the Beast gave her.]
[The Beast pours blood in a semicircle around Cordy. Then he sprinkles powder on top of the blood. He begins chanting, but Angel interrupts. He races into the warehouse with his coat over his head.]
ANGEL: Cordy! Cordy what did he do to you?
BEAST: Angelus. Thought you knew not to go out in the sunlight. [Angel runs toward Cordy and the Beast.] Do you two want to be alone? One last final goodbye? [Angel puts his hand to Cordy's face.]
CORDY: Angel I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have done this all alone.
ANGEL: It's okay. Just hang in there. I'll get you free.
CORDY: I love you Angel. I always have. [The Beast stands to the side and chuckles at the pathos. Connor enters. He sees Angel with Cordy. He heard what she said. The tenderness stings him. Giles and Lorne enter a few seconds later.]
BEAST: I always love an audience. [When he turns to look at the new arrivals, Angel hits him in the side of the skull with a sledgehammer. Then he hits him in the chest. Angel swings the hammer around and goes for the Beast's head. He grabs the hammer and rips it out of Angel's arms. With an uppercut swing of the hammer he clocks Angel in the jaw, sending him hurtling back towards Connor. The Beast throws the hammer at Giles. It spins end-over-end and hits Giles in the skull. He falls to the ground. The Beast leaps straight in the air and pushes part of the roof away. When he lands, there's an area exposed to direct sunlight that extends 30 feet in front of her and 15 feet to either side of her.]
LORNE: Rupert are you okay? Can you hear me?
GILES: I'm the one who suggested the hammer in the first place. Blasted irony.
[Connor heedlessly runs toward the Beast. He's desperate to save Cordy. He's also filled with rage because of what he saw transpire between Cordy and Angel. He wants to be save her before Angel gets the chance.]
BEAST: Are you sure I'M the demon you want to fight, Connor?
CONNOR: You leave Cordy alone.
BEAST: Again, I think you are confusing me with your father. [Connor lands a flying spin kick to the Beast's face, then a roundhouse to his chest, then a right uppercut to his chin. The Beast stands still. The blows have no effect. Connor lands a left hook to the side of the Beast's face. When he throws a right, the Beast reaches out his left arm and grabs Connor's right wrist. He lifts Connor into the air.]
BEAST: When have I ever attacked you? Never. [lands two thundering right jabs to Connor's left cheek. Tosses him 40 feet in the air. Connor lands on his feet. He smiles, thinking the Beast expected the throw to hurt him. He didn't. When Connor takes one step towards the Beast, he pounds Connor with left jab that sends him flying into the south wall. Connor gets up right away. He runs at the Beast and leaps in the air. Connor lands on the back of the Beast's shoulders. Connor grabs the demon's head, trying to snap his neck. He reaches up, grabs Connor's head, and throws him down on the ground in front of the Beast. Connor lands head first, leaving a dent in the concrete floor. He gets to his feet and turns to face the demon. The Beast strides forward and kicks Connor with his right hoof. Connor flies all the way across the warehouse. He hits the front (east) wall about 30 feet in the air. Connor falls to the floor but lands on his feet. He charges right back across the warehouse to resume his fight. Meanwhile, Gunn and Fred arrive.]
GILES: I must say, he is frighteningly durable.
GUNN: The Beast?
GILES: No, Connor.
GUNN: I'm down with you on that.
[Angel's also disturbed by his son's self-destructive persistence. But Connor makes it to the sunny area around the Beast before Angel can stop him. Even Cordy, in all her agony, feels sorry for the boy. His nose and mouth are bleeding, and the entire left side of his face is red. Connor brandishes an ax.]
ANGEL: Why the hell didn't you use that the last time!? [Connor leaps about 15 feet in the air. He comes down on the Beast and drives the ax into the demon's skull.]
LORNE: Who knew a white boy could jump like that?
GUNN: Hey, that's my line! [The ax is stuck in the demon's head. Connor lands without it. The Beast slowly reaches up his left arm to pulls it out. Connor quickly retreats. The Beast holds the ax as if he plans to throw it. Connor smiles. His teeth are red. The Beast lets it fly. Connor leaps in the air. He reaches down with his right arm and grabs the ax when it passes between his legs. He comes down with the ax.]
FRED: That was even cooler than the last time.
GILES: He's done this sort of thing before?
GUNN: It's a smaller ax, from farther away. I say the other time was tighter.
[Connor smiles again. Then he tosses the ax to the ground. Without his weapon, he charges at the Beast again. He leaps in the air, spins counterclockwise, and tries a left kick. The Beast grabs Connor's left foot with his right hand and throws Connor to the floor. Connor gets up and pulls out a dagger. He turns around and runs away from the Beast, and towards the north wall. At first the Beast pursues, then he stops. Connor takes a few steps up the wall and does a backflip. When he passes over the Beast, he's upside-down. He stabs the Beast in the right eye. He lands behind the Beast. When the demon turns, Connor kicks him in the right eye, trying to drive the blade in further. The Beast pounds Connor with left and right hooks. Connor falls to his knees. The Beast punches him in the spine, knocking Connor face-down on the ground. He stomps Connor twice in the back with his right hoof, and once with the left hoof. The Beast reaches down and picks up Connor, who by now is limp and powerless to resist.
The Beast tosses Connor up threw the roof. Connor plunges back through another section of the roof and lands on his back at the east end of the warehouse with a hideous thud. Giles, Lorne, Gunn and Fred are nearby. They all wince and turn away to avoid seeing the awful impact. After about five seconds Connor struggles to his feet. Angel runs over to him. The Beast takes the dagger out of his eye and sticks it in Cordy's chest, just below her heart.]
CONNOR: No!! [He starts to run back towards her to help.]
GILES: Oh, for God's sakes! [Angel grabs him, and does everyone else. They can't bear to watch him take any more punishment.]
CONNOR: I got him pretty good, didn't I? [His legs buckle, and Gunn and Fred grab him from behind, breaking his fall.]
ANGEL: You need to rest. Connor, how are you? Is anything broken?
CONNOR: Not much. I'm a little dizzy.
GILES: You've been very brave. But now we need to get you to a hospital.
CONNOR: What's that?
ANGEL: It's where they fix whatever's broken inside you.
CONNOR: I fix myself. [Wesley enters with his big gun.]
WES: Did I miss anything? What happened to Connor?
CONNOR: Why are you all around me like this?
ANGEL: Get back. Give him some air. Just stay with us, Connor. Do you feel like you're going to pass out?
CONNOR: I don't know what that feels like.
ANGEL: Do you feel like you're going to go to sleep?
CONNOR: Why would I be tired? It's the middle of the day.
WES: The Beast is beginning some sort of incantation. We have to stop him.
CONNOR: Really? Ya think!? [Gwen comes running in. Giles sees her out of the corner of his eye.]
GILES: Faith? How did you? Oh. You're not Faith.
GWEN: Sorry to disappoint you, jeeves.
ANGEL: Why are you soaking wet?
GWEN: It's a look. You like? Then thank the Beast. That thing tossed me through a wall and into the water. Now that I have backup maybe I'll take another shot and melting those shackles.
GILES: And just how do you propose to do that?
GWEN: With the tips of my fingers. I'm electric. Name's Gwen. Are you my new butler? You're a lot cuter than my last one.
GILES: [smiles bashfully] Well, thank you Gwen, but no, I'm a demon fighter like the rest of these fine folks. Except I have vastly more experience than any of them. Now then, we do a full-on assault. Use the gun for cover. The rest of us keep the Beast distracted while the lady in red does what she claims she can do. If we're lucky, we might even be able to lure the demon out into the shadows where Angel can operate.
ANGEL: This is my part I do the strategizing around here.
GILES: That was tactics, not strategy. Do you have a problem with my plan?
ANGEL: No. Not really. Just go. [The Beast is facing them as he chants. Wesley moves forward and fires two shots. Both miss the Beast by inches, and Cordy by a few feet. They make holes in the west wall near Cordy. The light hits Angel and he moves out of the way.]
CORDY: Why are you shooting at me?
FRED: [grabs Wes] Give me the gun.
WES: Why should I – ?
FRED: Because I know how to aim. [grabs gun]
WES: Are you even sure you can handle such a heavy – ? [Fred's first shot hits the Beast right between the eyes. The second round explodes inside his mouth. Then the clip falls out.
FRED: Dammit! Wes! Where's your ammo? [Fred's marksmanship provides them with the perfect opening to mount an attack. Giles comes at the Beast with the sledgehammer. Gunn with an ax. They strike simultaneously. The Beast grabs the hammer with his right hand, and the ax with his left. He knocks Giles and Gunn aside. Meanwhile, Gwen slipped by him and got to Cordy. The Beast turns and walks towards her. Wes pulls out two pistols and unloads, peppering the demon's back with bullets. But they do no damage. He swings for Gwen's head. She ducks, and sweeps the demon's right leg out from under him. He goes down on one knee. Gwen gets back up and reaches for the shackles. The Beast grabs her neck from behind.
BEAST: Did you really think it would be that easy? [hurls her into the south wall. The Beast walks forward. Fred comes at him with a hauberk. He punches her aside. Giles and Gunn resume their attack. He knocks them both down. The Beast looks bored. He walks east, out into the shadows, where Angel can fight him. Angel blocks the Beast's right hook. Angel hits him twice in the face. He duck's the Beast's left jab, and connects with a spin kick. Angel throws a right. The Beast grabs his fist. He throws a left. The Beast grabs his other fist. Angel goes bumpy. The Beast squeezes on Angel's fists. Angel growls and struggles to keep from being overpowered. He digs in his feet and holds his ground. The Beast lowers his head. He gores Angel in the right shoulder with his left horn. Then he flings Angel backwards and to the ground.
ANGEL: Is that all you got? [Beast leaps through the roof and drops back in, making two more holes along the center spine of the roof. The steel supports buckle and begin crashing to the ground. The tin sheeting slides away, and then all the supports tumble down. Everyone ducks for cover. Gored by the Beast and burned by the sun, Angel flees to the shade of the shadow provided by the south wall. As the dust settles, the Beast returns to Cordy and finishes his incantation. A forcefield goes up around the semicircle he drew when he entered. Wes moves towards him and fires a few more shots. They can't penetrate the barrier.]
WES: We can't break through that.
GWEN: I can. It's an electro-magnetic field. I can feel it. This is what I do best. [She goes up and puts out her right hand. A few seconds later she flies backwards through the air. When she lands, her temples are smoking.] Bastard. It's too strong. Even for me. [Frustrated, she puts her gloves back on. Everyone feels beaten down, because everyone has been beaten down. Although Wes and Lorne weren't hit by the Beast, both hit by large pieces of falling steel. Everyone retreats out the door on the east end. Angel has his coat over his head and sprints to a nearby awning. The others limp over to join him. Fred sees the deep and wide gash where Angel was gored.]
FRED: Angel, your shoulder.
ANGEL: It's nothing. It doesn't matter. Don't worry about me.
CONNOR: I'm worried about Cordy.
ANGEL: We'll get her. Just as soon as we think of a new plan.
GILES: It's about power.
GUNN: Yeah, and the Beast's got more than we do.
GILES: He uses our powers against us. The harder we come, the harder we fall.
LORNE: [dismissively] Well thank you Jimmy Cliff.
GILES: Whom has he hurt the most? Those of us with the most power. Connor. Angel and Gwen. Gwen – you're electric. And he shocks you. Connor's a great leaper. So he throws Connor. He uses your powers against you. He almost seems to welcome your challenges. And whom among us are the least injured? The powerless. He could have bashed my brains with a single blow. But he didn't. That is his weakness. That is how we defeat him. The power of the powerless.
WES: Vaclav Havel wrote that. You think he has the answer?
ANGEL: No. That would just be way too cool.
GWEN: Who is this guy and why is he going all Zen Master?
GILES: Sit tight. I'll be right back to explain. [He walks away, looks around the dockyards.] Of course! [takes out his phone, calls Buffy's house. Willow answers.] Hello Willow. Are Xander and Anya there?