I own and claim no rights to Angel, the series. Only characters unfamiliar to Ats, are original, and mine.

........................................

Betrayal

........................................

Angel and his friends followed the demon-vampire into the warehouse, and were met with the startling vision of hundreds of vampires and demons all over. Some were on the floors, others lay on the second floor landing, others in the office far on the other side of the room. Many were piled on top of the others, the vampires were slowly awakening, as the very last ray of sunlight left the horizon. The demons were sound asleep, their duties of mayhem and murder done for the day. The different demon types stuck together with their own kind, sleeping in large group piles, not mixing with the vampires, or the other types of demons beside their own. Silently, Angela stepped over several of the moving vampire bodies. A few of them rose to their feet, and stretched. For a moment, Angel and his friends feared that they would see them, and for the millionth time in the past few hours, they contemplated the repercussions if this was in fact a trap. But not a single vampire looked in their direction. Instead, almost like in trances, they were riveted to the vision of Angela moving to the center of the room. By the time she made it through the obstacles of bodies and narrow moving space to the center of the room, Angel and the others couldn't see her over the now fully woken crowd of vampires. They heard her clearly however, as her voice filled the room, "You have served my mother well. You have created mayhem, disorder, fear, everything you were suppose to. However, your services are no longer needed. Unfortunately I can not simply let you all go, for you must answer for all that you have done. I do not like doing what I am about to do, but it is necessary. I am sorry."

There was a murmur among the vampires as they stared at her confusingly. The door to the warehouse slammed shut, and much to Angel's consternation, locked. Angel and Connor's keen hearing could pick up the low hum of energy, as it was emitted throughout the room, released in thick and hot waves. Screams of fear erupted a moment later, as the entire circle directly in front of Angela were engulfed in flames. Almost as if in slow motion, the faces of the vampires became aware of exactly what was happening. What followed was pandemonium, as the vampires and now awake demons scrabbled to escape the wrath of this girl before them. As the crowd thinned away from the center of the room, Angel, Connor, Gunn, Fred, Wesley and Cordelia were presented with an image that for most of them, if they had seen only a few years ago, would have shocked them.

Angela's unburnt body was covered in flames, one hand covering the other, her hair bellowing straight up in the air. Waves of flame left her body and touched the vampires and demons, who disappeared seconds later. In a matter of a little more than a minute, more half of the whole warehouse disappeared in a burst of flames. The other half either clawed for a way out, or begged for their lives. Oblivious to it all, Angela continued her merciless massacre of the many evil beings. Angel and posse only contended with the vampires or demons that happened in their direction. Most didn't even notice that they were killing their fellow kind, all that matter to the decreasing number was escape. Then Cordy noticed something a little disturbing.

"Um, Angel?" she said frantically.

"Yeah?" Angel answered, as he moved aside to get out of the way of a very hysterical female vampire.

"The flames are getting a little close, don't you think?"

The group turned their attention to the increasing wave of fire, as it inched closer and closer to them. "Oh shit," Gunn murmured.

"What do we do?" Fred cried.

They heard a soft laugh, and looked to Angela. "You trust me to now, yet at every trying time, you turn away. Trust me." As the last word let her lips, a huge explosion of flames left the girls body, overtaking the whole room. The group stood together in a tight circle, and felt incased in a bubble like protective layer. They could feel the heat, even reach out and touch the fire, but it flowed around them like water flowed around a rock above the surface of a stream. Within moments, Angela, Connor, Angel, Gunn, Fred, Cordy, Wes, and a demon were the only remaining beings within the warehouse.

The demon looked around, fear and insane panic all over his eyes, as they all watched Angela slowly ceased flaming, her hair flowed down her back. She crooked her head at the demon, and in a blind of an eye was by his side. "You know who I am, and what I have done. I spared you to tell you this. You or anyone else mess with what is mine, I will find you, and kill you! Can you be a dear and spread that around for me?" she asked him sweetly.

Carefully, the demon nodded. The warehouse door unlocked with a bang, and then with an even louder slam, opened. "Then go."

If their were demon olympics, that sucker would have gotten the gold! Angela turned to Connor and his friends with a huge smile. "Okay, we are done. I have kept my end."

"Wait, you haven't given us Lady Elizabeth!" Fred commented.

"Ah, yes, that. Well, that will be a problem right now, since she fled from our little hideout this afternoon." She surveyed their blank expressions. "Our hide out was in the sewers."

"Ah," Cordy sighed.

"I have my men trailing her right now. We can go together to get her if you want," Angela told them good-naturedly. Connor eyed her suspiciously.

"Why?" he asked.

"I dunno, maybe because I am the only one who can pick up my boys scents? Just a thought," she exclaimed. "Hey, if I wanted to kill you, why didn't I just do it in there? You were cornered, their was no way you could have gotten out. It would have been so easy. But I didn't. I want this deal over and done with." She looked at them with a sincere expression of wanting, which made Connor and Angel even more suspicious, but they had to admit, it would have been so much easier to just get rid of them in there.

Angel shrugged. "Fine."

..........................................................

They speed down town, through back streets, past abandoned buildings, until Angela's nose picked up Dravin and Brax in an abandoned apartment building. They all hurried up the stairs to the first floor cautiously.

"Okay, it will be better if we split up," Angel told them. "Watch out for yourselves."

Before Angela could move away, he grabbed her arm and waited until the others were out of earshot. "If you do anything to them, I swear, no matter what it takes, I will kill you!"

Angela grinned. "Don't worry Angel. Your safe with me."

It did nothing to appease Angel's feelings as she disappeared into the shadows. Guardedly, the vampire headed up three flights of stairs, passed the hallway that Cordy was inspecting. He opened each door quickly and quietly, until he heard a soft, but obvious sound coming from the last door at the end of the hall. Silently, he hurried down the corridor, and paused outside the door. He raised his sword into readiness, then burst through the door. The room was empty. A shadow flowed over Angel from behind, and before he could move, a beefy hand clamped over his mouth and took a firm hold of him. A syringe needle appeared in the corner of his eye and he felt a prick as the needle pierced the skin of his neck. He felt like ice was being injected into his vains, before he was swept away into the sweet darkness of oblivion.

....................................................................

Connor stalked the top floor of the crumbling apartment building, his body tense and waiting for an attack. He peered into the open doorway of on of the apartments, and felt a small hand touch his shoulder. He whirled around, and barely stopped himself from running his sword straight through the smiling demon-girl. "Don't do that damnit!" he whispered furiously.

"Sorry Mr. Tense! I just came to ask if you have seen anything," Angela told him quietly. Connor shook his head.

"Nothing. Either your vampire friends have been dusted here by your mother, or they are trapped somewhere. I haven't seen any evidence that your mom has been here at all."

"Hmmm. Interesting," Angela intoned. Something in here voice made Connor look up.

Angela tossed a green glass bottle in her hand, whistling softly.

"What the hell is going on?" Connor demanded.

"I am really sorry Connor," Angela told him. "Really I am. But I knew you wouldn't agree to what I really wanted, so I had to trick you all a little. Don't worry, it won't really hurt...much." With the final word, she sent the bottle crashing into Connor's head, and caught the boy as he fell, blood pouring down his face. She removed a cloth from her pocket and gently wiped away the blood, then added pressure. After several moments, the bleeding lessened.

She heard loud footsteps coming up the stairway. Dravin and Brax appeared at the top of the stairs. "Has it been done?" she murmured, as she gently lifted Connor into her arms with surprising ease.

"Yes. They are all out."

"Good. We have what we came for. Let's go."

*********************************

A/N: Ah! *Rubs aching shoulders* Well that was fun. Next chapter is following immediately after this one...I suddenly got a burst of inspiration. Please Review! Thanks, and take care.