The night had turned cool and the contrast with the day's warmth had caused mist to rise and dew to form. The Slayerettes moved through a damp, foggy darkness, unconsciously drawing nearer each other, and with good reason. The weather might have cooled, but the vampire hunting was hot. The tensions that had existed as they left the Rosenberg home vanished under the demands of battle.
"I can't remember the last time I've staked this many," Buffy whispered.
"Yeah," Oz said. "It's like Whack-A-Mole."
"Make that Whack-A-Vamp," Xander said.
"Please," Cordelia snapped. "This fog is ruining my hair."
"Tell you what," Buffy said, "let's go that way--" she pointed east "-and make one more sweep. Then we call it a night, okay?" There was a general murmur of assent and they moved off into the night.
***
The opposing bands of vampires were easy to differentiate. One group was decked out in black combat gear and looking like a Special Forces squad. The other crew was scruffy and raggedy, wearing apparently whatever odds and ends they had come across. They faced each other, separated by twenty or thirty feet of open grass. The air between them was charged like a summer sky just before a thunderstorm.
The Scoobies watched from a vantage point a little over a hundred yards away atop a small knoll. The smell of damp earth rose into their nostrils as they lay on the ground.
"If this wet grass ruins my jacket I'm going to be really pissed," Cordelia hissed under her breath.
"Let's go." Faith started to rise from her prone position. Buffy threw an arm across her back, pulling the dark Slayer down.
"Wait," Buffy said. "Not yet."
"Excuse me? Did you forget the slayer part of the gig?" Faith tried to twist out from under the pinioning arm. "See 'em and slaughter 'em."
Buffy's voice held an edge. "Look, there are Trick vampires down there and Reverend vampires. If they're working together again, I want to know as much as I can. We watch and then we attack... and then we tell Giles."
Oz touched the blonde Slayer's arm. "Uh, I don't think they're working together." He pointed and Buffy saw the two sides entangled in combat. The roil of bodies separated; three corpses turned to dust almost as an afterthought. Dim light sparkled off the dew-laden grass and cast a diffuse glow in the heavy mist. The combatants surged together again and loud groans and hateful screams rent the night air. Everyone was still standing when they parted, but blood glittered and torn flaps of clothing dangled.
"Uh, who is that?" Xander's voice was shaky. The others looked at him, then followed his gaze until they too saw the tall figure of a man striding toward the fight. His long hair streamed out behind him and as he drew closer he reached up with one hand and gave it a savage twist.
"What did he do?" Willow asked.
"I think he just tied his hair in a knot," Cordelia said in a tone of voice that said she could think of no greater horror.
Buffy squinted in the dark. "Is that...?"
"Yeah," Faith said. "It's the Reverend."
Strangely enough, Othniel Hampton's followers showed no jubilation at his approach. In fact they shrank back. Trick's lackeys murmured among themselves, puzzled by their foes' reactions to this unexpected appearance. Hampton simply strode forward, neither hurrying nor delaying, as he passed by his own company. He was only a few feet from Trick's forces when his pace quickened. He covered the last few strides at a dead run.
"Whoa," said Oz.
"Double whoa," whispered Willow. "And side of eek."
Buffy had seen lots of combat. She had seen the assassins of the Order of Taraka. She had seen Spike and Drusilla. She had even seen Angelus in full fury. But she had never seen anything like this. This was an explosion of fury so pure, so intense, that it radiated like heat. None of Hampton's followers fought at his side. He waded into Trick's force alone and he laid waste to them.
"Wow," Xander gulped. "So pulling out the heart has the same effect as staking it." Buffy glanced at Faith. The dark Slayer stared at the slaughter, her eyes wide, lips slightly parted. She seemed to feel the weight of Buffy's gaze and turned her head. Buffy frowned. Something passed through Faith's eyes, just for a split-second, something unreadable.
"Still want to jump in?" Buffy asked.
"The moment has passed," Faith replied.
"Okay, everybody, let's crawl away slowly." Buffy herded the Scoobies off the rise and out of sight of the skirmish. At the bottom of the knoll they got to their feet and walked away. Behind them, voices rose in ululating howls that drifted over the rise.
***
"That was the Mayor." Quisling's cell phone was a silver wafer as light as a burglar's conscience. He slipped it into the inside pocket of his jacket and raised his eyebrows at Mr. Trick, who responded by rolling his eyes upward and looking off to the left. Mr. Quisling kept his voice placid. "He seemed concerned."
"I'll bet he was." The fingers of Trick's left hand stroked his forehead. "Let me guess... He wants to see me." Quisling nodded. Trick made a disgusted noise. "It's always the same. Everybody's brave, everybody wants to go for it until the first thing goes wrong. It's like Mike Tyson said, everybody's got a plan until they get hit." He sighed and rose to his feet. "Remind me again, Quisling, why am I doing this?"
"Because you stand to make more money than you can count? Power beyond mortal ken?"
Trick considered, then nodded. "Yeah, that's it. Thanks. I feel better now."
***
"It was majorly weird, Giles. I mean freaky-styley." Buffy took a bite out of her peach and chewed. Her Watcher considered her statement while he unpacked his own lunch. It was hard for the Slayer to tell if her declaration or his concentration on his meal caused his frown.
"I'm not sure how significant that is," he said. "Vampires don't necessarily get along with one another." He unwrapped a sandwich.
"Giles, you've got two groups who weren't fighting and now they are. That seems pretty--" Buffy made a face and waved her hand. "What are you eating?"
Giles looked up, puzzled. "Cheese. Stilton."
Buffy blinked her watering eyes. "It smells like an open grave. And I'm not exaggerating. It even overwhelms the library smell."
"I have seen you consume food-and I use that term loosely-that would make a goat blanch. Forgive me for having the temerity to expose you to the rich aroma of a Stilton." Giles took a conspicuous interest in his meal.
Buffy shot him a hard glare. "I can tell when you're pissed. You start pulling out the fancy chat."
He put down his lunch and stared into space for a moment before turning to her. "Are you quite finished being childish?"
"Not quite. Your lunch smells like feet." She flashed a winsome smile. "Now, are you ready to talk about the vampire feud?"
"Buffy, you are simply making too much of this. I repeat myself-vampires are not sociable creatures. The strong rule the weak and keep order by means of violence and intimidation. It wouldn't surprise me if you saw Trick's lackeys fighting each other." The Watcher's words carried an air of finality and irritation.
Buffy's mouth tightened into a thin line. "Giles, you've never just dismissed me like this before."
"Well, maybe that's because things are different." His voice was sharp and Buffy pulled back in surprise. "There are other things happening in the world, you know, some of them very important, so you'll forgive me if I don't seem quite as excited as you about something that is truly mundane and ordinary."
"Don't do this, Giles." The Slayer's voice quivered with barely suppressed emotion. "If something else is bothering you, don't get all authority figure on me. Tell me what it is, tell me it's none of my business, but don't dismiss me." She was breathing hard. "I think this is something, and I don't want to miss anything else."
"Anything... what have you missed?"
She touched her neck. "This, for one."
Giles' face softened. "Buffy, you didn't miss that. No one knew... I mean, as your Watcher, even I didn't know."
"Yeah, well, tell Faith that. We almost lost her, and things are still on thin ice. Because we thought we knew what was going on."
Giles put a hand over his mouth, then lowered it. "You're right," he said as he looked at the table. "I still think this is a normal occurrence, but it bears consideration."
"There," Buffy said, dabbing at her eyes with a napkin. "Was that so hard?"
"I can't remember the last time I've staked this many," Buffy whispered.
"Yeah," Oz said. "It's like Whack-A-Mole."
"Make that Whack-A-Vamp," Xander said.
"Please," Cordelia snapped. "This fog is ruining my hair."
"Tell you what," Buffy said, "let's go that way--" she pointed east "-and make one more sweep. Then we call it a night, okay?" There was a general murmur of assent and they moved off into the night.
***
The opposing bands of vampires were easy to differentiate. One group was decked out in black combat gear and looking like a Special Forces squad. The other crew was scruffy and raggedy, wearing apparently whatever odds and ends they had come across. They faced each other, separated by twenty or thirty feet of open grass. The air between them was charged like a summer sky just before a thunderstorm.
The Scoobies watched from a vantage point a little over a hundred yards away atop a small knoll. The smell of damp earth rose into their nostrils as they lay on the ground.
"If this wet grass ruins my jacket I'm going to be really pissed," Cordelia hissed under her breath.
"Let's go." Faith started to rise from her prone position. Buffy threw an arm across her back, pulling the dark Slayer down.
"Wait," Buffy said. "Not yet."
"Excuse me? Did you forget the slayer part of the gig?" Faith tried to twist out from under the pinioning arm. "See 'em and slaughter 'em."
Buffy's voice held an edge. "Look, there are Trick vampires down there and Reverend vampires. If they're working together again, I want to know as much as I can. We watch and then we attack... and then we tell Giles."
Oz touched the blonde Slayer's arm. "Uh, I don't think they're working together." He pointed and Buffy saw the two sides entangled in combat. The roil of bodies separated; three corpses turned to dust almost as an afterthought. Dim light sparkled off the dew-laden grass and cast a diffuse glow in the heavy mist. The combatants surged together again and loud groans and hateful screams rent the night air. Everyone was still standing when they parted, but blood glittered and torn flaps of clothing dangled.
"Uh, who is that?" Xander's voice was shaky. The others looked at him, then followed his gaze until they too saw the tall figure of a man striding toward the fight. His long hair streamed out behind him and as he drew closer he reached up with one hand and gave it a savage twist.
"What did he do?" Willow asked.
"I think he just tied his hair in a knot," Cordelia said in a tone of voice that said she could think of no greater horror.
Buffy squinted in the dark. "Is that...?"
"Yeah," Faith said. "It's the Reverend."
Strangely enough, Othniel Hampton's followers showed no jubilation at his approach. In fact they shrank back. Trick's lackeys murmured among themselves, puzzled by their foes' reactions to this unexpected appearance. Hampton simply strode forward, neither hurrying nor delaying, as he passed by his own company. He was only a few feet from Trick's forces when his pace quickened. He covered the last few strides at a dead run.
"Whoa," said Oz.
"Double whoa," whispered Willow. "And side of eek."
Buffy had seen lots of combat. She had seen the assassins of the Order of Taraka. She had seen Spike and Drusilla. She had even seen Angelus in full fury. But she had never seen anything like this. This was an explosion of fury so pure, so intense, that it radiated like heat. None of Hampton's followers fought at his side. He waded into Trick's force alone and he laid waste to them.
"Wow," Xander gulped. "So pulling out the heart has the same effect as staking it." Buffy glanced at Faith. The dark Slayer stared at the slaughter, her eyes wide, lips slightly parted. She seemed to feel the weight of Buffy's gaze and turned her head. Buffy frowned. Something passed through Faith's eyes, just for a split-second, something unreadable.
"Still want to jump in?" Buffy asked.
"The moment has passed," Faith replied.
"Okay, everybody, let's crawl away slowly." Buffy herded the Scoobies off the rise and out of sight of the skirmish. At the bottom of the knoll they got to their feet and walked away. Behind them, voices rose in ululating howls that drifted over the rise.
***
"That was the Mayor." Quisling's cell phone was a silver wafer as light as a burglar's conscience. He slipped it into the inside pocket of his jacket and raised his eyebrows at Mr. Trick, who responded by rolling his eyes upward and looking off to the left. Mr. Quisling kept his voice placid. "He seemed concerned."
"I'll bet he was." The fingers of Trick's left hand stroked his forehead. "Let me guess... He wants to see me." Quisling nodded. Trick made a disgusted noise. "It's always the same. Everybody's brave, everybody wants to go for it until the first thing goes wrong. It's like Mike Tyson said, everybody's got a plan until they get hit." He sighed and rose to his feet. "Remind me again, Quisling, why am I doing this?"
"Because you stand to make more money than you can count? Power beyond mortal ken?"
Trick considered, then nodded. "Yeah, that's it. Thanks. I feel better now."
***
"It was majorly weird, Giles. I mean freaky-styley." Buffy took a bite out of her peach and chewed. Her Watcher considered her statement while he unpacked his own lunch. It was hard for the Slayer to tell if her declaration or his concentration on his meal caused his frown.
"I'm not sure how significant that is," he said. "Vampires don't necessarily get along with one another." He unwrapped a sandwich.
"Giles, you've got two groups who weren't fighting and now they are. That seems pretty--" Buffy made a face and waved her hand. "What are you eating?"
Giles looked up, puzzled. "Cheese. Stilton."
Buffy blinked her watering eyes. "It smells like an open grave. And I'm not exaggerating. It even overwhelms the library smell."
"I have seen you consume food-and I use that term loosely-that would make a goat blanch. Forgive me for having the temerity to expose you to the rich aroma of a Stilton." Giles took a conspicuous interest in his meal.
Buffy shot him a hard glare. "I can tell when you're pissed. You start pulling out the fancy chat."
He put down his lunch and stared into space for a moment before turning to her. "Are you quite finished being childish?"
"Not quite. Your lunch smells like feet." She flashed a winsome smile. "Now, are you ready to talk about the vampire feud?"
"Buffy, you are simply making too much of this. I repeat myself-vampires are not sociable creatures. The strong rule the weak and keep order by means of violence and intimidation. It wouldn't surprise me if you saw Trick's lackeys fighting each other." The Watcher's words carried an air of finality and irritation.
Buffy's mouth tightened into a thin line. "Giles, you've never just dismissed me like this before."
"Well, maybe that's because things are different." His voice was sharp and Buffy pulled back in surprise. "There are other things happening in the world, you know, some of them very important, so you'll forgive me if I don't seem quite as excited as you about something that is truly mundane and ordinary."
"Don't do this, Giles." The Slayer's voice quivered with barely suppressed emotion. "If something else is bothering you, don't get all authority figure on me. Tell me what it is, tell me it's none of my business, but don't dismiss me." She was breathing hard. "I think this is something, and I don't want to miss anything else."
"Anything... what have you missed?"
She touched her neck. "This, for one."
Giles' face softened. "Buffy, you didn't miss that. No one knew... I mean, as your Watcher, even I didn't know."
"Yeah, well, tell Faith that. We almost lost her, and things are still on thin ice. Because we thought we knew what was going on."
Giles put a hand over his mouth, then lowered it. "You're right," he said as he looked at the table. "I still think this is a normal occurrence, but it bears consideration."
"There," Buffy said, dabbing at her eyes with a napkin. "Was that so hard?"
