((Been awhile I know, but here's another chappie. Oh and I have fixed the
glaring error that was the massive paragraph in the last chapter. Gotta
love what writing at 3 am can do to you. : ) Enjoy.))
Chapter 16: Taking Charge
She was tired of waiting. They were all tired of waiting. The potentials were trained. Well, as trained as they were going to get considering the circumstances. The books had all been read. And the studious practice of avoidance had swept the house. Dawn avoiding the potentials, Xander and Anya avoiding each other, Spike avoiding Buffy, Buffy avoiding Angel. The latter wasn't that hard considering the fact that he was staying at the mansion and actually avoiding Buffy, Spike, and Andrew (because really who besides Dawn wasn't avoiding Andrew?). Consequently the two days that had past since Faith and Angel had arrived had been spent by all in a whirlwind of research, training, and patrols. Faith spent, just a bit on the uncomfortably too much side for Buffy, her time with both Spike and Angel, separately of course. Since they were avoiding each other as well. . .
So it came that after yet another grueling dreaming session for Buffy that the decision was made for them all to take action.
------------
Buffy entered the dining room from her patrol, sending the potentials (sans Kennedy of course) off to catch some sleep, and glanced around the table before speaking up.
"Willow, do you have that containment spell ready?"
"I think so, just a few tweaks and pulls here and there, and it should be situated. Why?" The redheads emerald eyes twinkled up questioningly at her friend.
"Because I think its time we make our move. The girls are ready. There isn't going to be enough time for them to improve any more then they already have before the First rears its ugly stolen heads again. If we're going to beat it. And we are. Then we need to take this fight to it. No more waiting."
It was Giles that voiced his disagreement before the others.
"Buffy, do you really think that you'll accomplish anything by leading those girls into a slaughter?"
She cocked her eyebrow at him. "Are you accomplishing anything sitting in that chair today that you didn't yesterday or the day before that?" She snipped back at him.
"Buffy-"
"No! Giles, I'm done. We. Are. Ready. Understand. No more waiting." She turned from him and faced Andrew, not breaking a beat. "Andrew, I have a job for you. Something that Willow and I've been discussing."
At the petrified look on his face Willow piped in, "Yeah, a little demon raising, a seal opening, a few glamours thrown here and there. Nothing to it." She nodded her head a little to excitedly, disproving her previous statement.
The boy merely gulped. "Seal opening? B-But I thought. . .why threaten to kill me if I don't close it, only to make me open it again, huh? What kind of sick game is that?"
"Oh, that's not sick. Once I knew this guy. . ."
"Faith, not now."
The dark haired slayer just smiled at the death gaze she was getting, "Sorry B. I was just saying." She cocked her head, earning a smirk from Spike and another scowl from Buffy, before Willow continued.
"The seal needed to be closed then. But from what Buffy and I have figured out, we think that if we activate it again, and toss this nifty little containment spell over the Hellmouth that we can let the fight just pour on out and. . ." All the vigor was gone from the redheads little speech, so Buffy took over.
"And we can take the First's army out on our terms, in our time, with little chance of the rest of the world even feeling a hiccup."
------------
So the discussion progressed, with Willow and Buffy leading the way, detailing to everyone their, actually quite well thought out, plans. Plans that had been pieced together through all of the bits and pieces that everyone had found while researching. Bits that on their own didn't mean much, but when put together became quite useful.
The intention was for Andrew to activate the seal using a small amount of his own blood.
"Oh," Anya piped in cheerily, "I found that!" She turned to Andrew smiling for approval before continuing. "It seems that you and the seal have a special bond, so to speak," Quick glance towards Xander *Sigh.* She continued looking at the rest of them, "Something to do with him having given it its first sacrifice, it should only need a few drops of blood to open."
After that it would be his job would be to hang back and attempt to conceal any injured fighters from the ensuing battle, so as to give them half a chance and keep him out of the way.
In order to keep the hordes of demons released confined from the outside world Willow would place up the containment spell.
"I think I have all the kinks worked out, problem is that the spell would take an enormous amount of energy."
"How enormous are we talking here? Are we talking giant mayor snake or apocolyptic dimension opening vortex. Clarify, please." Xander offered up questioningly. It was Buffy who answered:
"The best source of energy at the site for Willow to make use of would be from the Hellmouth"
"Oh."
"Quite." Giles was absentmindedly cleaning his classes at this point, his brow furrowed in thought. "The dark energy that would fill her could be a problem, she'd need a source or purification." He spoke mostly to himself.
"Exactly! That's why I was kina hopin' you could lend me a hand Giles? Be my anchor? Please?"
So that's were Giles came in. It would be his job to channel opposite Willow, purifying her as needed.
For the rest of them it was simple. Fight. Kill. Survive. Win. Each of the rest of the Scoobies would be in charge of a group of potentials. Basically they would be the front lines of the battle with the army of girls kept at a distance behind them, only needing to become involved if and when a demon broke through the front lines. Xander, Anya, and Robin would be fighting as a team since they had no super powers to fall back on. As much as Buffy would have liked to have kept them out of it, it was decided (after much verbal sparring) that their help would be greatly needed.
------------
It was nearly sunrise when the meeting was done. In twelve hours they would be at war.
Oddly enough, with the thought of an impending apocalypse to fuel them, they all managed to get some sleep. Albeit, not entirely peaceful.
Chapter 16: Taking Charge
She was tired of waiting. They were all tired of waiting. The potentials were trained. Well, as trained as they were going to get considering the circumstances. The books had all been read. And the studious practice of avoidance had swept the house. Dawn avoiding the potentials, Xander and Anya avoiding each other, Spike avoiding Buffy, Buffy avoiding Angel. The latter wasn't that hard considering the fact that he was staying at the mansion and actually avoiding Buffy, Spike, and Andrew (because really who besides Dawn wasn't avoiding Andrew?). Consequently the two days that had past since Faith and Angel had arrived had been spent by all in a whirlwind of research, training, and patrols. Faith spent, just a bit on the uncomfortably too much side for Buffy, her time with both Spike and Angel, separately of course. Since they were avoiding each other as well. . .
So it came that after yet another grueling dreaming session for Buffy that the decision was made for them all to take action.
------------
Buffy entered the dining room from her patrol, sending the potentials (sans Kennedy of course) off to catch some sleep, and glanced around the table before speaking up.
"Willow, do you have that containment spell ready?"
"I think so, just a few tweaks and pulls here and there, and it should be situated. Why?" The redheads emerald eyes twinkled up questioningly at her friend.
"Because I think its time we make our move. The girls are ready. There isn't going to be enough time for them to improve any more then they already have before the First rears its ugly stolen heads again. If we're going to beat it. And we are. Then we need to take this fight to it. No more waiting."
It was Giles that voiced his disagreement before the others.
"Buffy, do you really think that you'll accomplish anything by leading those girls into a slaughter?"
She cocked her eyebrow at him. "Are you accomplishing anything sitting in that chair today that you didn't yesterday or the day before that?" She snipped back at him.
"Buffy-"
"No! Giles, I'm done. We. Are. Ready. Understand. No more waiting." She turned from him and faced Andrew, not breaking a beat. "Andrew, I have a job for you. Something that Willow and I've been discussing."
At the petrified look on his face Willow piped in, "Yeah, a little demon raising, a seal opening, a few glamours thrown here and there. Nothing to it." She nodded her head a little to excitedly, disproving her previous statement.
The boy merely gulped. "Seal opening? B-But I thought. . .why threaten to kill me if I don't close it, only to make me open it again, huh? What kind of sick game is that?"
"Oh, that's not sick. Once I knew this guy. . ."
"Faith, not now."
The dark haired slayer just smiled at the death gaze she was getting, "Sorry B. I was just saying." She cocked her head, earning a smirk from Spike and another scowl from Buffy, before Willow continued.
"The seal needed to be closed then. But from what Buffy and I have figured out, we think that if we activate it again, and toss this nifty little containment spell over the Hellmouth that we can let the fight just pour on out and. . ." All the vigor was gone from the redheads little speech, so Buffy took over.
"And we can take the First's army out on our terms, in our time, with little chance of the rest of the world even feeling a hiccup."
------------
So the discussion progressed, with Willow and Buffy leading the way, detailing to everyone their, actually quite well thought out, plans. Plans that had been pieced together through all of the bits and pieces that everyone had found while researching. Bits that on their own didn't mean much, but when put together became quite useful.
The intention was for Andrew to activate the seal using a small amount of his own blood.
"Oh," Anya piped in cheerily, "I found that!" She turned to Andrew smiling for approval before continuing. "It seems that you and the seal have a special bond, so to speak," Quick glance towards Xander *Sigh.* She continued looking at the rest of them, "Something to do with him having given it its first sacrifice, it should only need a few drops of blood to open."
After that it would be his job would be to hang back and attempt to conceal any injured fighters from the ensuing battle, so as to give them half a chance and keep him out of the way.
In order to keep the hordes of demons released confined from the outside world Willow would place up the containment spell.
"I think I have all the kinks worked out, problem is that the spell would take an enormous amount of energy."
"How enormous are we talking here? Are we talking giant mayor snake or apocolyptic dimension opening vortex. Clarify, please." Xander offered up questioningly. It was Buffy who answered:
"The best source of energy at the site for Willow to make use of would be from the Hellmouth"
"Oh."
"Quite." Giles was absentmindedly cleaning his classes at this point, his brow furrowed in thought. "The dark energy that would fill her could be a problem, she'd need a source or purification." He spoke mostly to himself.
"Exactly! That's why I was kina hopin' you could lend me a hand Giles? Be my anchor? Please?"
So that's were Giles came in. It would be his job to channel opposite Willow, purifying her as needed.
For the rest of them it was simple. Fight. Kill. Survive. Win. Each of the rest of the Scoobies would be in charge of a group of potentials. Basically they would be the front lines of the battle with the army of girls kept at a distance behind them, only needing to become involved if and when a demon broke through the front lines. Xander, Anya, and Robin would be fighting as a team since they had no super powers to fall back on. As much as Buffy would have liked to have kept them out of it, it was decided (after much verbal sparring) that their help would be greatly needed.
------------
It was nearly sunrise when the meeting was done. In twelve hours they would be at war.
Oddly enough, with the thought of an impending apocalypse to fuel them, they all managed to get some sleep. Albeit, not entirely peaceful.