Chapter Twenty-Three
The potentials sat in a circle with Faith in the middle, Buffy stood outside of the group holding the spell and a small gold urn. The rest of the group waited in the other room.
Buffy tossed the ingredients into the urn. "Soil from the sacred ground, twice blessed water for strength, a rock for power and herbs to heal." She said as she added the items one by one into the urn. "A flower in bloom for the spirit of woman and a flame to give passion." Buffy lit the ingredients on fire as a green smoke filled the room. "Powers we call upon you, fortify these girls with the strength of the one. As your disciples did in the early days of the world, we bind these women, these chosen ones, to the earth and bestow upon them the powers that you hold, that you grant and beseech that these girls will be your protectors until the demons and the forces of evil can be stopped. We will be your army, make way for the paradise, which this world should have been. We will be your hands, to fight back the evil. We will be your feet, so you shall be able to walk the land. We will be your body and you will be our guide."
The green smoke filled the room and swirled from Faith out to the potentials. The smoke grew thicker as Buffy chanted the spell. The items in the urn burned and the fire rose.
"As I read these words, the power shall obey. Into these few chosen girls, the power it will stay, only in death shall the powers be passed." Buffy finished. She lifted a gold plate and clamped it down over the urn, extinguishing the flame.
The green smoke rushed into the girl's mouths and noses as they gasped. The sun dimmed for a moment before pouring brighter than any other day. The house filled with bright streams of sunlight. Buffy heard sizzling as Spike ran for the cover of the basement.
"Ahhh!!!" Spike screamed from the basement. Buffy couldn't break the circle, couldn't leave her place. She forced herself to ignore the painful cries.
Angel bolted down the stairs and shielded his eyes from the bright light pouring through the small windows in the basement. Angel grabbed a blanket and tossed it over Spike, pushing his body under the staircase and behind the training dummy. Angel blocked the remaining sunlight with his own body.
"Bloody hell." Spike moaned as he pushed the blanket off of his face. Bright red patches of burnt flesh marred his skin.
Angel helped Spike get settled in a dark corner and returned upstairs. Angel winked as he passed Buffy, who remained in her place as the green smoke continued to flow into the girls. Buffy inhaled deeply as she watched this.
-
"How'd it go?" Giles asked as Buffy entered the living room.
"Good." Buffy said. "I think. The girls are resting. They all said they felt weird. Faith's with them."
"Did it work?" Wesley asked.
"I think?" Buffy non-answered. "Green smoke and all that stuff filled the girls. I guess we wait and see if they wake up with super-strength." Buffy yawned.
"Buffy, you're tired." Dawn said worried. "Why don't you get some rest too?"
"We all should." Wesley said. "The sun will be down soon and our new friends will be out in force."
Buffy nodded and walked slowly to her room. The potentials lined the floors of the bedrooms.
"Hey." Angel said, catching Buffy's arm. "How are you really?"
"Tired." Buffy said with a small voice. "And a little wiped. Maybe even depressed?"
"You want to talk about it?" Angel asked softly.
"I want to sleep." Buffy said, pulling Angel inside. "Rest with me?"
"Of course." Angel said, following Buffy to her bed. Angel carefully stepped around the sleeping girls. "It's really crowded up here."
"See, you thought we were making everyone sleep downstairs." Buffy smiled as she crawled under the covers.
Angel climbed in next to her and held her in her arms. "Sleep." He whispered.
Buffy curled tighter into Angel's arms and rested her head on his chest. She shut her eyes and quickly fell asleep.
: Buffy walked slowly, aware of the fact that she was dreaming.
"B?" Faith asked, joining her.
"We meet again." Buffy said, staring out at all of the women.
"It's still not enough." The voice came from behind the girls. "Having the power only helps if you know how to use it."
Buffy searched for the person speaking. She looked around as the sea of women parted. Surrounded by the potentials - no the new slayers - was Willow, sitting in a circle of sand chanting. Her eyes and hair were black, her face covered with blue and black veins. Willow's eyes met Buffy's.
"I'm afraid." Willow said.
"Don't be." Buffy said. "I'm here for you Willow."
"We all are." Faith smiled and walked with Buffy to Willow's side. Faith and Buffy joined the circle of slayers and held hands.
"Together you are strong." The voice came from behind Buffy again. "Alone, you are nothing. It is your humanity that binds you to this world, to the people you protect. Be there for each other. Friendship, family, love, these are your powers above all else." :
Buffy awoke with the start. At the same time, all the girls in the room sat up at once. They all looked at each other, then to Buffy.
Things were the same in the other room, as Faith and the other girls woke at the same time. Faith regarded the girls in the room with her and moved to Willow's sleeping form.
Willow rested, tucked tightly in her bed. Kennedy and Vi were tucked in there as well, though only Willow remained asleep. Kennedy brushed a strand of hair off of Willow's face.
Dawn woke as the other girls began talking. "Trying to sleep here." Dawn called from her bed, turning over sleepily and nearly knocking Molly to the floor.
Buffy and Faith met in the hallway, by now all the slayers were awake and getting dressed. The girls moved quietly down the stairs and out into the backyard. The sun was beginning to set as Buffy stood up.
"We end this now." She said forcefully.
"They wanted a fight, we're going to bring one to them." Faith said, standing in front of the group.
"We know stakes won't work against the Turok-Han." Buffy said. "But beheading does. They're afraid of sunlight. Hopefully fire is the same thing."
"We gear up with metal tonight." Faith said. "Swords, knifes, anything that'll cut through vampire. Rona, Molly, Kennedy and Vi, you'll be the flam units. Anything that'll get fire on to them."
"Flame thrower." Rona said. "There's only two here."
"Then we make more. Get more. Buy more." Buffy said. "It doesn't matter. We have maybe another hour before the sun is completely down. Wake up Giles and Xander and have them take you to the hardware store."
"We hold back the demons tonight. Tomorrow morning we hit at sunrise." Faith said. "We've been fighting on their terms for too long. We start fighting under ours now."
"But how do we know where they are?" Vi asked from the crowd. "We don't know where the First had set up shop."
"We do now." Buffy said.
"That room from our dream." Faith said. "That's the basement in City Hall."
"Why would the First be in City Hall?" Molly asked.
"Because the old Mayor set this city up for the demons." Faith said. "He had all kinds of mystical charms and symbols down there. It's dark, it's quiet and it's only a few blocks away from the Hellmouth."
"Let's get going." Buffy said.
The girls nodded and accepted their orders. The set off to wake the others and go out for supplies. Kennedy hung back as the girls dissipated.
"Buffy?" Kennedy asked as she approached the women. "About the dream, about Willow."
Faith inhaled deeply and turned to Buffy. "I think Willow's the key to expelling the Turok-Han." Faith said.
"It makes sense." Buffy said. "She's the strongest magically. And the First did try to get her to kill herself."
"When?" Kennedy half shouted.
"Before you guys came here." Buffy said. "Before we knew for sure what we were dealing with."
"So, what do we do?" Kennedy asked.
"Leave it to me. And Faith." Buffy said. "We'll deal with Willow."
"But I-." Kennedy started.
"Listen." Faith said. "Trust that Buffy can help Willow. They've known each other for a long time. She'll be able to help Willow."
The potentials sat in a circle with Faith in the middle, Buffy stood outside of the group holding the spell and a small gold urn. The rest of the group waited in the other room.
Buffy tossed the ingredients into the urn. "Soil from the sacred ground, twice blessed water for strength, a rock for power and herbs to heal." She said as she added the items one by one into the urn. "A flower in bloom for the spirit of woman and a flame to give passion." Buffy lit the ingredients on fire as a green smoke filled the room. "Powers we call upon you, fortify these girls with the strength of the one. As your disciples did in the early days of the world, we bind these women, these chosen ones, to the earth and bestow upon them the powers that you hold, that you grant and beseech that these girls will be your protectors until the demons and the forces of evil can be stopped. We will be your army, make way for the paradise, which this world should have been. We will be your hands, to fight back the evil. We will be your feet, so you shall be able to walk the land. We will be your body and you will be our guide."
The green smoke filled the room and swirled from Faith out to the potentials. The smoke grew thicker as Buffy chanted the spell. The items in the urn burned and the fire rose.
"As I read these words, the power shall obey. Into these few chosen girls, the power it will stay, only in death shall the powers be passed." Buffy finished. She lifted a gold plate and clamped it down over the urn, extinguishing the flame.
The green smoke rushed into the girl's mouths and noses as they gasped. The sun dimmed for a moment before pouring brighter than any other day. The house filled with bright streams of sunlight. Buffy heard sizzling as Spike ran for the cover of the basement.
"Ahhh!!!" Spike screamed from the basement. Buffy couldn't break the circle, couldn't leave her place. She forced herself to ignore the painful cries.
Angel bolted down the stairs and shielded his eyes from the bright light pouring through the small windows in the basement. Angel grabbed a blanket and tossed it over Spike, pushing his body under the staircase and behind the training dummy. Angel blocked the remaining sunlight with his own body.
"Bloody hell." Spike moaned as he pushed the blanket off of his face. Bright red patches of burnt flesh marred his skin.
Angel helped Spike get settled in a dark corner and returned upstairs. Angel winked as he passed Buffy, who remained in her place as the green smoke continued to flow into the girls. Buffy inhaled deeply as she watched this.
-
"How'd it go?" Giles asked as Buffy entered the living room.
"Good." Buffy said. "I think. The girls are resting. They all said they felt weird. Faith's with them."
"Did it work?" Wesley asked.
"I think?" Buffy non-answered. "Green smoke and all that stuff filled the girls. I guess we wait and see if they wake up with super-strength." Buffy yawned.
"Buffy, you're tired." Dawn said worried. "Why don't you get some rest too?"
"We all should." Wesley said. "The sun will be down soon and our new friends will be out in force."
Buffy nodded and walked slowly to her room. The potentials lined the floors of the bedrooms.
"Hey." Angel said, catching Buffy's arm. "How are you really?"
"Tired." Buffy said with a small voice. "And a little wiped. Maybe even depressed?"
"You want to talk about it?" Angel asked softly.
"I want to sleep." Buffy said, pulling Angel inside. "Rest with me?"
"Of course." Angel said, following Buffy to her bed. Angel carefully stepped around the sleeping girls. "It's really crowded up here."
"See, you thought we were making everyone sleep downstairs." Buffy smiled as she crawled under the covers.
Angel climbed in next to her and held her in her arms. "Sleep." He whispered.
Buffy curled tighter into Angel's arms and rested her head on his chest. She shut her eyes and quickly fell asleep.
: Buffy walked slowly, aware of the fact that she was dreaming.
"B?" Faith asked, joining her.
"We meet again." Buffy said, staring out at all of the women.
"It's still not enough." The voice came from behind the girls. "Having the power only helps if you know how to use it."
Buffy searched for the person speaking. She looked around as the sea of women parted. Surrounded by the potentials - no the new slayers - was Willow, sitting in a circle of sand chanting. Her eyes and hair were black, her face covered with blue and black veins. Willow's eyes met Buffy's.
"I'm afraid." Willow said.
"Don't be." Buffy said. "I'm here for you Willow."
"We all are." Faith smiled and walked with Buffy to Willow's side. Faith and Buffy joined the circle of slayers and held hands.
"Together you are strong." The voice came from behind Buffy again. "Alone, you are nothing. It is your humanity that binds you to this world, to the people you protect. Be there for each other. Friendship, family, love, these are your powers above all else." :
Buffy awoke with the start. At the same time, all the girls in the room sat up at once. They all looked at each other, then to Buffy.
Things were the same in the other room, as Faith and the other girls woke at the same time. Faith regarded the girls in the room with her and moved to Willow's sleeping form.
Willow rested, tucked tightly in her bed. Kennedy and Vi were tucked in there as well, though only Willow remained asleep. Kennedy brushed a strand of hair off of Willow's face.
Dawn woke as the other girls began talking. "Trying to sleep here." Dawn called from her bed, turning over sleepily and nearly knocking Molly to the floor.
Buffy and Faith met in the hallway, by now all the slayers were awake and getting dressed. The girls moved quietly down the stairs and out into the backyard. The sun was beginning to set as Buffy stood up.
"We end this now." She said forcefully.
"They wanted a fight, we're going to bring one to them." Faith said, standing in front of the group.
"We know stakes won't work against the Turok-Han." Buffy said. "But beheading does. They're afraid of sunlight. Hopefully fire is the same thing."
"We gear up with metal tonight." Faith said. "Swords, knifes, anything that'll cut through vampire. Rona, Molly, Kennedy and Vi, you'll be the flam units. Anything that'll get fire on to them."
"Flame thrower." Rona said. "There's only two here."
"Then we make more. Get more. Buy more." Buffy said. "It doesn't matter. We have maybe another hour before the sun is completely down. Wake up Giles and Xander and have them take you to the hardware store."
"We hold back the demons tonight. Tomorrow morning we hit at sunrise." Faith said. "We've been fighting on their terms for too long. We start fighting under ours now."
"But how do we know where they are?" Vi asked from the crowd. "We don't know where the First had set up shop."
"We do now." Buffy said.
"That room from our dream." Faith said. "That's the basement in City Hall."
"Why would the First be in City Hall?" Molly asked.
"Because the old Mayor set this city up for the demons." Faith said. "He had all kinds of mystical charms and symbols down there. It's dark, it's quiet and it's only a few blocks away from the Hellmouth."
"Let's get going." Buffy said.
The girls nodded and accepted their orders. The set off to wake the others and go out for supplies. Kennedy hung back as the girls dissipated.
"Buffy?" Kennedy asked as she approached the women. "About the dream, about Willow."
Faith inhaled deeply and turned to Buffy. "I think Willow's the key to expelling the Turok-Han." Faith said.
"It makes sense." Buffy said. "She's the strongest magically. And the First did try to get her to kill herself."
"When?" Kennedy half shouted.
"Before you guys came here." Buffy said. "Before we knew for sure what we were dealing with."
"So, what do we do?" Kennedy asked.
"Leave it to me. And Faith." Buffy said. "We'll deal with Willow."
"But I-." Kennedy started.
"Listen." Faith said. "Trust that Buffy can help Willow. They've known each other for a long time. She'll be able to help Willow."
