In the Space of a Journey
Chapter Eighteen
England: The Compound
After leaving his "guestroom," Xander was disoriented for a moment. He just knew he had to get downstairs and find the front door. Then he wasn't sure what would be the best plan. Trying to find Joyce and the others? Trying to find Buffy and Giles? His mind was still whirling with all that Gwendolyn had told him about the Council and its less than perfect aspects. Apparently Spike had been right all along... imagine that!
Xander kept quiet and walked slowly through the maze of hallways and staircases, ready to dive into a hiding place, or to launch an attack, if he saw a Watcher. But no one was around.
When he finally stumbled across the main staircase, he grinned, excitement and relief warring with that funny feeling that a happy ending just could not be accomplished so easily -- like in horror movies when the happy music starts to play just before the supposedly dead killer wakes up for that last, fatal blow. Xander hesitated at the top of the stairs, and looked around carefully. He didn't hear anything or see anyone. Finally he decided to go for it. He hurried down the stairs. The door was right there, when SMACK!
Xander found himself on the floor one second, his head spinning from the force of the impact, and then next second someone held him several feet off the floor. His feet dangled below him, and the tight grip on his upper arms would definitely leave a bruise. There was only one person who had a grip like that...
"Xander! You're alive!"
"Buffy?" Xander mumbled, shaking his head and trying to clear it. When his eyes focused, instead of Buffy's clear, green gaze he found himself looking into a pair of exotic brown eyes.
"Cordelia? What are you doing here?" He took a second look. "What happened to your hair?"
"There's no time fer playin' catch up! Put him down an' let's get outta here."
"Doyle?" Xander looked around, but couldn't see the Irishman. He did see Oz, looking strange in tweed. "Oh, man, either you can do a good brogue, or I'm going insane."
Cordelia dropped Xander to the ground. He caught his balance, and heard her whisper, "Doyle's here. You just can't see him. Invisibility ring. And Oz and I... there was this plan from Giles to share Buffy's power. But we've got to get out of here. There's an alarm going off downstairs."
"Did you find Sonya, too?" Xander asked, wondering if his missing friend was beyond his sight as well.
His hopes were crushed when Cordelia simply shook her head.
Oz's eyes were bleak. "We couldn't get into the room. Not even with the strength."
Then the last part of Cordelia's statement registered in Xander's brain. "You guys tripped the alarm downstairs? When Joyce and I did that the guys were on us almost instantly." He looked around and still saw and heard no one. "This is really freaky." He thought for a second. "Well, maybe the tribunal is distracting them or something. Let's just try to take advantage of it. Oz, you go first. Cordy, you take the rear. Doyle... just do what you can if they spring something."
Realizing the sense of Xander's orders -- experience on the job came in handy -- the others fell in as he'd suggested. Then they quickly moved through the front door and out into the grounds. For a minute, everything looked deserted. Xander almost thought they were going to make it. Then a crew of Watcher guards and minions suddenly sprang up in front of them from their carefully concealed hiding places.
"Watch out for the girl with the blue eyes," Xander managed to call. "She's a hypnotist. These guys are more than they seem, and it's all bad!" And then he was too busy facing off with a guy who had electric sparks flowing off of his fingers to say anything else.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The cavernous room of the tribunal was completely quiet. The judges had withdrawn with the Board of Directors to discuss sentencing, but no one was willing to leave. They didn't want to miss the end of the saga. Buffy sat in her chair, a feeling of lead weighing down her stomach. She didn't know what she was supposed to do now. Visions of quitting the Council raced through her mind, but how would that help Doyle and Sonya and even Xander? But continuing to pretend to go along with them made her feel icky inside.
On the other side of the room, Giles stared blankly at the table in front of him. He'd been demoted from Active Watcher. His life as he knew it was gone. But he'd known it would be, especially from the moment that Ethan had stepped up to the stand. Then all hope had been lost. He'd hidden his past so carefully. Even at the time, he'd known not to advertise his true identity -- hence the pseudonym "Ripper." Giles hadn't been kicked off the Council yet, but he knew that was coming. He could see it in the way the proconsul looked at him.
But Giles's main concern flowed to his children. He'd never expected to bond with them so much. When he'd moved to Sunnydale, working in a high school was the last thing he'd ever wanted. He didn't like teenagers, their loudness, their uncouth habits, their irresponsibility. Perhaps it reminded him of a time in his life that he'd tried, and thought he'd succeeded, to bury. But the chosen few -- Sonya, Xander, Buffy, even Oz, Amy and Cordelia to an extent -- had gotten to him. Made him care about them more than anything else that used to be important to him. Even more than sacred Council guidelines and precepts. Even knowing now where his actions had taken him, Giles knew that he still wouldn't have changed them and risked the lives of his charges, not even for his own safety.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Sunnydale: A Warehouse
Angel looked at the warehouse across the street, feeling both surprised and vindicated. It was the same warehouse he and Terrance had found Roger in the night before. (I knew Terrance was a creature of habit. If only we'd patrolled a little longer..) But Angel broke that train of thought off quickly and turned to look at Jenny and Faith. He was nervous about having Jenny with them, but no amount of persuasion could convince her to stay at the condo.
"Everyone remember the plan?" he asked.
Faith gave him her patented "well, duh" expression. "I'm going in alone. You guys are my backup."
Angel nodded. "Don't try and take them all out on your own, Faith. String them along for a while until we've had enough time to get set up."
"You don't know anything for sure, Angel. The note could have been the lie. There's no proof that this isn't exactly what Nicole said it is." Faith's eyes snapped defiantly, but Angel could sense the anxiety beneath the surface, a feeling the hard-headed commando leader would never admit to in front of Angel and Jenny.
He looked deep into Faith's brown eyes. "Don't worry, Faith. Trust me. If things are on the up and up, nothing bad will happen. We..." He gestured to himself and Jenny. "... aren't in the business of finding scapegoats."
Faith stared at him for a moment longer, and then turned toward the door.
"We've got your back," Angel called softly.
"I hope I don't need you to," Faith grunted in reply. She walked slowly, giving Angel and Jenny enough time to melt into the shadows. Then she slipped silently into the warehouse.
Angel turned to see Jenny giving him a contemplative gaze. "You really know how to talk to her, Angel."
"I try," he replied, "but she doesn't like to listen."
"No one can help that." Jenny didn't take her eyes off him. Angel could sense that something which was always there. He knew that the woman had secrets. He'd always assumed that she had issues with vampires. Most humans did. It was apparent, at least to him, in the way she treated him, trusting him in battle but not on a personal level. But they all had secrets, didn't they? His mind flashed to Faith, and suddenly to Buffy as well. They just couldn't let that stuff interfere with the big picture.
He stared to feel uncomfortable under her scrutiny. "Is something wrong?"
She hesitated, then shook her head. "Nothing that won't keep."
"Can I help?"
That surprised her. "No. I wish you could, but you can't. Now, let's get ready."
Angel nodded, and the unlikely duo made their way to their stations.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Inside the warehouse, Amy still lay strapped on the bed. Her only relief was that Terrance was now more preoccupied with Nicole and the diary than with her. Amy's mind raced. She had to find a way out of this predicament. She craned her neck to look at her bonds. Thick ropes wound around her wrists and feet several times, knotted securely to the bedposts.
There was a spell Jenny had taught her. When they'd practiced they had been plucking a rose, but perhaps she could use it to untie the knots. Amy frowned, concentrating on her magic, trying to call it to the task at hand. She could feel the sweat bead up on her brow as she concentrated. Amy never understood why it was the little things that seemed the hardest. Jenny said it was because it took so much out of you to control the magic in a confined action. A big action, like blasting someone or levitating a vampire, things Amy had become adept at doing, took the same amount of power, but she didn't have to focus it on a knot smaller than her fist.
Then she felt it, a tiny loosening in the ropes tying her right wrist. The success gave Amy hope. She redoubled her efforts. As she watched, the knot suddenly came loose. Her hand, which had been straining at the rope, dropped down. Amy glanced back at Terrance and Nicole. Still bent over the diary, they hadn't realized yet what she was doing. With her free hand, Amy reached for the other knot, clawing at it with her pink-painted fingernails.
"So, the little witch *can* do something without her mentor."
Amy stifled a surprised sob when she looked up and saw Rio looming over her. His smile was cold, though his gaze seemed a bit admiring. "I didn't think you could do anything without Jenny to hold your hand."
"You don't know anything about me," Amy growled. She expected him to yell at her, alerting Terrance and Nicole to her near escape. But he didn't. Instead he just picked up her hand and retied the rope.
"Don't do that again, Amy," he ordered. "I would hate to have to put a paralysis spell on you."
"Why aren't you telling them?" Amy asked. "I would think you'd want me caught, and dead."
"You have too much talent to die so needlessly," Rio replied, shrugging.
"You're going to save me for Terrance to kill? How servile of you."
"Terrance doesn't deserve you," Rio replied cryptically.
Amy thought she saw something in his eyes. Something human. She seized the opportunity. "Why are you doing this, Rio? Why are you helping them kill? You are such a good warlock. You know more spells and have such control over your magic. When we were practicing with you the other night, I wished I knew as much as you do. But, how can you help them, lead them into doing something like this?"
"There are so many things you don't know about," Rio mumbled, almost to himself.
"So, tell me," Amy whispered.
His eyes suddenly shuttered closed. "I can't."
"Please, Rio." Amy hated the begging tone in her voice, but if Rio didn't help her get out of here, there wasn't much hope left. In the back of her mind, she knew that Angel and Jenny would try and rescue her, but she didn't want them to fall into the commandos' trap. If she could just get free...
Rio looked down at her, his face implacable. Amy stared back at him, willing him to help her, wishing she knew a good brainwashing spell.
"Well, well... Look what we've got here!"
All eyes in the room looked up to see Faith standing above them on a catwalk, her hands on her hips.
"Faith!" Terrance called.
"Don't 'Faith' me, Terrance!" Faith retorted. Her eyes flashed to Nicole. "So, 'he's' got Amy, huh? You guys must think I'm the biggest ditz in the whole world! But you went to the trouble of getting me here... I would have expected something a little more than this. At least a fake bad guy holding you captive or something!"
Nicole was ready with her cue. "Faith!" she screamed. "Look out behind you."
"Oh yeah!" Faith responded with a sneer. "I'm *really* gonna fall for that one."
Before Amy could shout a real warning, a huge two-by-four careened toward her and hit the girl in the back of the head. Faith's eyes rolled up in her head, and she toppled over the edge of the catwalk. Rio whispered a few words that lessened her fall. She hit the floor with only a small crack. Amy winced anyway.
Terrance let go of the two-by-four with his telekinetic grip, and it clattered to the floor. "Rio, Nicole, we've got to see if she brought her pet vampire along or not."
Nicole nodded, pulling her red hair up into a quick, serviceable ponytail. "I'll take the roof."
"Rio, take the perimeter," Terrance ordered.
"Rio?" Amy whispered, but he didn't look down. Instead he just nodded and headed out.
Terrance used his powers to pick up Faith and levitate her to a chair near the bed. He began to tie her up, too. His gaze fell on Amy. "I guess I was right about her all along. She really is too gullible to lead a team."
"You wish!"
His eyes widened dramatically when he realized that Faith was awake... and holding a wickedly sharp knife to his back. "If one thing in this room starts to float, Buster, I'll slit you open from the neck down and pull your spine out with my bare hands to use as a toothpick!" The girl's eyes flashed to Amy. "You OK?"
"I will be," Amy replied, "once I get out of these ropes."
"But... how... what..." Terrance stammered. He held himself straight keeping as much distance between him and the point of the knife as Faith would allow, which wasn't much.
Her face twitched into a flash of a smile. "Guess you're not the only one in this group who can act! Now, Terrance, let's see what we can do about Amy's ropes..."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
England: The Compound
Xander circled his adversary -- whom he'd nicknamed Electro Dude because of the sparks he weilded with a painful accuracy -- outside the Compound, oblivious to the burns on his back and arms from the last attack. Later they would hurt, but now Xander didn't have time for that.
A few feet away, Cordelia was facing off with a burly guard.
"Yer just a little bit of a thing," the guard said, frowning at her. "If you run home to yer mommy right now I promise not to tear your bloody head off."
Cordelia sneered at him. "I'd like to see you try, Buddy!"
The guard took her challenge as an invitation and lunged at her. Cordelia grabbed him by his shirt and flung him toward Xander. The guy was heavy, but she made it.
Xander saw the motion out of the corner of his eyes, and in a display of teamwork, he maneuvered Electro Dude into position. The guard hit Xander's opponent and sizzled with the deadly contact. Xander came up to the guy, now pinned by the guard's body, and knocked him unconscious.
"Good going, Chase," Xander called before squaring off against the next two guards springing in his direction.
"What can I say?" Cordelia replied, finding a grin. "I work out." She was actually enjoying this. The girls at home would never believe that Cordelia Chase was having fun getting sweaty and beating people up.
"Not enough."
Before Cordelia could turn around, someone picked her up from behind and threw her down. She felt her head crack against the courtyard wall and groaned. She opened her eyes and saw the blurry image of another guard coming after her.
"Don't think I'm going to underestimate you like Edmund did," the guard muttered.
The world was still spinning. Cordelia couldn't do anything. Then, suddenly, the guard grunted and fell to the ground. Cordelia looked up to see who her savior was and frowned. No one was there.
"Are ye alright, Princess?" a familiar Irish brogue asked, seemingly coming out of thin air.
"Yeah," she said as the world settled down around her again. She held out her hand for Doyle to help her up. She felt his tight grasp on her fingers, and then she could see him again. She knew that meant she was invisible, too. Cordelia darted Doyle a quick smile. "Thanks."
"Me pleasure, always," Doyle replied. Then he winked at her.
Cordelia felt a funny tremble in her stomach. Quickly, she turned away and began scanning the area. Xander was holding his own against a couple of guards, but Oz was surrounded by a whole group of them. She gestured, and Doyle noticed the same thing. As one, they began moving in that direction. Doyle stooped to pick up a rock with his free hand, and Cordelia mouthed the words, "One, two, three!"
On three, she let go of Doyle's hand a plunged into the fray. Doyle leveled one guy with the rock, and then he turned to check on Xander. The lad had downed the two guards, but his fight has stilled. He was staring at a tiny girl with big blue eyes.
Remembering what Xander had told them earlier, Doyle ran over and pushed the lad out of the girl's line of sight. "Are ye OK, Xander?" Doyle asked.
Xander rubbed his eyes. "Yeah. I just can't believe I was stupid enough to fall into her trap again. She was hiding behind one of the guards, and when the guard fell down, there she was, and I was staring into her eyes."
The little girl suddenly screamed, "They've got an invisible friend!"
At that, Xander got up, grabbed the girl by the arms -- being sure to point her away from his face -- and whispered, "If you don't shut up I'm going to have to knock you over the head like I did the other guys. I really don't want to do that..."
Suddenly, the little girl fell into silence. Both Xander and Doyle were surprised, but grateful. It seemed somehow very, very wrong to beat up a little girl, no matter what powers she had.
Moments later they were joined by Oz and Cordelia, who'd left a trail of unconscious guards and minions in their wake. And a couple of dead ones.
"It was hard not to kill them all," Cordelia said quietly.
"But it's not their fault the proconsul has hidden the truth from them," Xander added. "Especially the guards. They're just human."
"Guys," Oz said suddenly, "go meet Joyce. Get out of here."
"What are you talking about?" Cordelia demanded. "We're all going."
Oz shook his head. "I'm going back for Sonya. We just took out a big portion of their guards. They're bound to be weaker now. And I'm not leaving her here. I just can't."
"I'm going with you," Xander said suddenly.
"Me, too," came Doyle's disembodied voice.
"Me, three," Cordelia added with only one wistful look towards the gate.
"I don't want you guys to risk yourselves..." Oz said.
"No deal," Xander replied. "If you go, we all go." He glanced down at the girl in his arms. "And I think I've got a great idea about how to get the combination for that key pad..."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Sunnydale: The Warehouse Roof
Angel crouched on the roof, peering in through a skylight. He saw Faith, Amy and Terrance, but he couldn't see either of the other commandos.
"Looking for someone, vampire?"
Angel spun around to see Nicole standing behind him, a cold smile on her face.
"What are you doing, Nicole?" Angel asked. "I thought you worked to help people, not hurt them."
"I do," Nicole replied, her smile not wavering one iota. "There's just one more thing I... we need first, and I won't let a vampire and his minions stand in my way."
"That's a convenient way of looking at it," Angel challenged her. "How can you live with yourself?" While he talked, he started walking toward her.
Nicole held out her hands. "Don't move another step, vampire. Have you forgotten my powers so soon? I've been gifted with the power of fire... particularly deadly to one of your ilk. One more move, and you fry where you stand."
Angel froze, trying to think of a way out of this. But, Nicole was right. Her power could turn him to ash in a matter of moments. "All right, Nicole. What do you want me to do?"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
England: The Compound
It didn't take long for Oz, Cordelia, the invisible Doyle and Xander carrying Blue Eyes to make it back down to the bowels of the Compound. They met a few more guards on the way, but a Slayer-enhanced Cordelia and Oz were more than a match for any single opponent. They noticed that the alarm had been silenced. Maybe they'd thought one squad would be enough to kill them all?
Back in the white-tiled hallway, they came upon a man in a white coat hurrying towards the stairs.
"What are you doing here?" the man asked, his eyes widening. He looked around for an escape route, but he seemed to be cornered.
"He knows the passcode," Doyle hissed to Oz. "He's had quite a hand in torturin' Sonya and meself. He's called Charles."
Oz glared at Charles and grabbed the larger man by the collar. "You're going to let us in that room right now." He half-carried, half-drug Charles to the room holding Sonya.
"No," Charles replied. He was pale and shaking, but he stood his ground. "I will never tell."
"Come on, Blue Eyes," Xander urged, holding the girl up in front of Charles. "Do your thing."
"I'm hungry," the little girl whined.
"Get him to tell us what he knows, and then we'll feed you," Cordelia promised.
"Hungry," the girl repeated, reaching toward Charles with some kind of anger flashing in her eyes. "I want him!"
Charles's eyes went even wider, and he strained as far away from the girl as he could in Oz's tight grip. "No, no. Don't let her touch me! I'll open the door."
That wasn't what Xander had in mind, but it worked just as well. "Do it," he ordered.
Oz dropped Charles, and the frightened Watcher punched in the numbers on the keypad with trembling fingers. The lock clicked and Oz burst into the room. "Sonya!"
"Oz?" Sonya looked at him incredulously. "Is it really you?" Her face was pale, and there were dark circles under her eyes. Even with her quick healing factor, she was sore and wobbly as she sat up in bed. The tests she had undergone had strained the magic to its limits, and every successive healing took longer.
He rushed to her bedside and enfolded her in a tight hug.
"How did you get in here?" Sonya asked, returning the hug just as fiercely.
"We had a little help."
At Xander's voice, Sonya looked up to see him standing there, holding a little girl. Cordelia stood next to, of all people, Charles. A vengeful smile curved Sonya's lips as she pulled away from Oz. "Why, Charles, I see you've met my friends."
"I'm hungry!" the little girl said again.
"For Pete's sake, here!" Cordelia reached into her pocket and pulled out a peppermint she'd been saving for later. "Take this."
The girl ignored the mint. Instead she reached out and put her hands on Xander's bare forearms. Xander began to feel a tingle at the skin-to-skin contact. That was when the full weight of what the girl was doing and what Gwendolyn had told him kicked in. He dropped her. The girl landed on her feet. Her face seemed thinner. "I'm so hungry," she moaned, but she couldn't get close to anyone. Everyone was on their guard, but no one. wanted to touch her. Blue Eyes frowned, and then turned and ran out the door.
"What's wrong with her?" Cordelia asked aloud.
Xander looked at them, his eyes dark with worry. "She's dangerous. Very dangerous." He looked at Charles. The Watcher stared back at them, fear at being trapped obvious on his face. "He knows."
"I... I... won't tell."
Cordelia rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right! We've heard that one before."
"We've got to get that girl before she kills someone," Xander told them. "She's very deadly. Especially with that hypnotic power." Quickly he filled them in on what Gwendolyn had said, carefully omitting the name of his informant so Charles wouldn't know. "She could hypnotize someone and take their life force easily. All she needs is to get them alone."
Sonya glared at Charles. "That fits in with what they... he... did to me and Doyle. They wanted to take our powers..." The fury on her face gave way to concern. "Where's Doyle?"
"Donae worry. I'm right here, lass."
The disembodied voice, on top of everything else, was too much for Charles to take. He promptly passed out. No one bothered to catch him when he hit the floor. For a second, Oz looked like he was going to kick Charles while he was down, but the boy restrained himself.
"Sonya, Doyle," Xander said, taking charge again, "you guys stay invisible. Tie up Charles and then follow us. The Slayers and I will go ahead and try to catch Blue Eyes."
"It would serve them right if we just let her kill them all," Sonya muttered. She blushed when she caught the look Oz gave her. "I'm sorry. It's just..."
"It's all right," Xander said. He walked over and give her a quick, friendly hug. "You've been through a lot. I, for one, am just glad to see you again. But keep in mind, not all of the Council is bad." He looked to Oz and Cordelia. "Now, let's go." They nodded, and the three of them went out the door.
As Sonya watched, Charles suddenly floated over to the bed. As Sonya began to help tie him up, several things that she had accepted earlier finally formed cohesive questions in her head. "Um... Doyle? Why are you invisible? And what did Xander mean by Slayers?"
Chapter Eighteen
England: The Compound
After leaving his "guestroom," Xander was disoriented for a moment. He just knew he had to get downstairs and find the front door. Then he wasn't sure what would be the best plan. Trying to find Joyce and the others? Trying to find Buffy and Giles? His mind was still whirling with all that Gwendolyn had told him about the Council and its less than perfect aspects. Apparently Spike had been right all along... imagine that!
Xander kept quiet and walked slowly through the maze of hallways and staircases, ready to dive into a hiding place, or to launch an attack, if he saw a Watcher. But no one was around.
When he finally stumbled across the main staircase, he grinned, excitement and relief warring with that funny feeling that a happy ending just could not be accomplished so easily -- like in horror movies when the happy music starts to play just before the supposedly dead killer wakes up for that last, fatal blow. Xander hesitated at the top of the stairs, and looked around carefully. He didn't hear anything or see anyone. Finally he decided to go for it. He hurried down the stairs. The door was right there, when SMACK!
Xander found himself on the floor one second, his head spinning from the force of the impact, and then next second someone held him several feet off the floor. His feet dangled below him, and the tight grip on his upper arms would definitely leave a bruise. There was only one person who had a grip like that...
"Xander! You're alive!"
"Buffy?" Xander mumbled, shaking his head and trying to clear it. When his eyes focused, instead of Buffy's clear, green gaze he found himself looking into a pair of exotic brown eyes.
"Cordelia? What are you doing here?" He took a second look. "What happened to your hair?"
"There's no time fer playin' catch up! Put him down an' let's get outta here."
"Doyle?" Xander looked around, but couldn't see the Irishman. He did see Oz, looking strange in tweed. "Oh, man, either you can do a good brogue, or I'm going insane."
Cordelia dropped Xander to the ground. He caught his balance, and heard her whisper, "Doyle's here. You just can't see him. Invisibility ring. And Oz and I... there was this plan from Giles to share Buffy's power. But we've got to get out of here. There's an alarm going off downstairs."
"Did you find Sonya, too?" Xander asked, wondering if his missing friend was beyond his sight as well.
His hopes were crushed when Cordelia simply shook her head.
Oz's eyes were bleak. "We couldn't get into the room. Not even with the strength."
Then the last part of Cordelia's statement registered in Xander's brain. "You guys tripped the alarm downstairs? When Joyce and I did that the guys were on us almost instantly." He looked around and still saw and heard no one. "This is really freaky." He thought for a second. "Well, maybe the tribunal is distracting them or something. Let's just try to take advantage of it. Oz, you go first. Cordy, you take the rear. Doyle... just do what you can if they spring something."
Realizing the sense of Xander's orders -- experience on the job came in handy -- the others fell in as he'd suggested. Then they quickly moved through the front door and out into the grounds. For a minute, everything looked deserted. Xander almost thought they were going to make it. Then a crew of Watcher guards and minions suddenly sprang up in front of them from their carefully concealed hiding places.
"Watch out for the girl with the blue eyes," Xander managed to call. "She's a hypnotist. These guys are more than they seem, and it's all bad!" And then he was too busy facing off with a guy who had electric sparks flowing off of his fingers to say anything else.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The cavernous room of the tribunal was completely quiet. The judges had withdrawn with the Board of Directors to discuss sentencing, but no one was willing to leave. They didn't want to miss the end of the saga. Buffy sat in her chair, a feeling of lead weighing down her stomach. She didn't know what she was supposed to do now. Visions of quitting the Council raced through her mind, but how would that help Doyle and Sonya and even Xander? But continuing to pretend to go along with them made her feel icky inside.
On the other side of the room, Giles stared blankly at the table in front of him. He'd been demoted from Active Watcher. His life as he knew it was gone. But he'd known it would be, especially from the moment that Ethan had stepped up to the stand. Then all hope had been lost. He'd hidden his past so carefully. Even at the time, he'd known not to advertise his true identity -- hence the pseudonym "Ripper." Giles hadn't been kicked off the Council yet, but he knew that was coming. He could see it in the way the proconsul looked at him.
But Giles's main concern flowed to his children. He'd never expected to bond with them so much. When he'd moved to Sunnydale, working in a high school was the last thing he'd ever wanted. He didn't like teenagers, their loudness, their uncouth habits, their irresponsibility. Perhaps it reminded him of a time in his life that he'd tried, and thought he'd succeeded, to bury. But the chosen few -- Sonya, Xander, Buffy, even Oz, Amy and Cordelia to an extent -- had gotten to him. Made him care about them more than anything else that used to be important to him. Even more than sacred Council guidelines and precepts. Even knowing now where his actions had taken him, Giles knew that he still wouldn't have changed them and risked the lives of his charges, not even for his own safety.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Sunnydale: A Warehouse
Angel looked at the warehouse across the street, feeling both surprised and vindicated. It was the same warehouse he and Terrance had found Roger in the night before. (I knew Terrance was a creature of habit. If only we'd patrolled a little longer..) But Angel broke that train of thought off quickly and turned to look at Jenny and Faith. He was nervous about having Jenny with them, but no amount of persuasion could convince her to stay at the condo.
"Everyone remember the plan?" he asked.
Faith gave him her patented "well, duh" expression. "I'm going in alone. You guys are my backup."
Angel nodded. "Don't try and take them all out on your own, Faith. String them along for a while until we've had enough time to get set up."
"You don't know anything for sure, Angel. The note could have been the lie. There's no proof that this isn't exactly what Nicole said it is." Faith's eyes snapped defiantly, but Angel could sense the anxiety beneath the surface, a feeling the hard-headed commando leader would never admit to in front of Angel and Jenny.
He looked deep into Faith's brown eyes. "Don't worry, Faith. Trust me. If things are on the up and up, nothing bad will happen. We..." He gestured to himself and Jenny. "... aren't in the business of finding scapegoats."
Faith stared at him for a moment longer, and then turned toward the door.
"We've got your back," Angel called softly.
"I hope I don't need you to," Faith grunted in reply. She walked slowly, giving Angel and Jenny enough time to melt into the shadows. Then she slipped silently into the warehouse.
Angel turned to see Jenny giving him a contemplative gaze. "You really know how to talk to her, Angel."
"I try," he replied, "but she doesn't like to listen."
"No one can help that." Jenny didn't take her eyes off him. Angel could sense that something which was always there. He knew that the woman had secrets. He'd always assumed that she had issues with vampires. Most humans did. It was apparent, at least to him, in the way she treated him, trusting him in battle but not on a personal level. But they all had secrets, didn't they? His mind flashed to Faith, and suddenly to Buffy as well. They just couldn't let that stuff interfere with the big picture.
He stared to feel uncomfortable under her scrutiny. "Is something wrong?"
She hesitated, then shook her head. "Nothing that won't keep."
"Can I help?"
That surprised her. "No. I wish you could, but you can't. Now, let's get ready."
Angel nodded, and the unlikely duo made their way to their stations.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Inside the warehouse, Amy still lay strapped on the bed. Her only relief was that Terrance was now more preoccupied with Nicole and the diary than with her. Amy's mind raced. She had to find a way out of this predicament. She craned her neck to look at her bonds. Thick ropes wound around her wrists and feet several times, knotted securely to the bedposts.
There was a spell Jenny had taught her. When they'd practiced they had been plucking a rose, but perhaps she could use it to untie the knots. Amy frowned, concentrating on her magic, trying to call it to the task at hand. She could feel the sweat bead up on her brow as she concentrated. Amy never understood why it was the little things that seemed the hardest. Jenny said it was because it took so much out of you to control the magic in a confined action. A big action, like blasting someone or levitating a vampire, things Amy had become adept at doing, took the same amount of power, but she didn't have to focus it on a knot smaller than her fist.
Then she felt it, a tiny loosening in the ropes tying her right wrist. The success gave Amy hope. She redoubled her efforts. As she watched, the knot suddenly came loose. Her hand, which had been straining at the rope, dropped down. Amy glanced back at Terrance and Nicole. Still bent over the diary, they hadn't realized yet what she was doing. With her free hand, Amy reached for the other knot, clawing at it with her pink-painted fingernails.
"So, the little witch *can* do something without her mentor."
Amy stifled a surprised sob when she looked up and saw Rio looming over her. His smile was cold, though his gaze seemed a bit admiring. "I didn't think you could do anything without Jenny to hold your hand."
"You don't know anything about me," Amy growled. She expected him to yell at her, alerting Terrance and Nicole to her near escape. But he didn't. Instead he just picked up her hand and retied the rope.
"Don't do that again, Amy," he ordered. "I would hate to have to put a paralysis spell on you."
"Why aren't you telling them?" Amy asked. "I would think you'd want me caught, and dead."
"You have too much talent to die so needlessly," Rio replied, shrugging.
"You're going to save me for Terrance to kill? How servile of you."
"Terrance doesn't deserve you," Rio replied cryptically.
Amy thought she saw something in his eyes. Something human. She seized the opportunity. "Why are you doing this, Rio? Why are you helping them kill? You are such a good warlock. You know more spells and have such control over your magic. When we were practicing with you the other night, I wished I knew as much as you do. But, how can you help them, lead them into doing something like this?"
"There are so many things you don't know about," Rio mumbled, almost to himself.
"So, tell me," Amy whispered.
His eyes suddenly shuttered closed. "I can't."
"Please, Rio." Amy hated the begging tone in her voice, but if Rio didn't help her get out of here, there wasn't much hope left. In the back of her mind, she knew that Angel and Jenny would try and rescue her, but she didn't want them to fall into the commandos' trap. If she could just get free...
Rio looked down at her, his face implacable. Amy stared back at him, willing him to help her, wishing she knew a good brainwashing spell.
"Well, well... Look what we've got here!"
All eyes in the room looked up to see Faith standing above them on a catwalk, her hands on her hips.
"Faith!" Terrance called.
"Don't 'Faith' me, Terrance!" Faith retorted. Her eyes flashed to Nicole. "So, 'he's' got Amy, huh? You guys must think I'm the biggest ditz in the whole world! But you went to the trouble of getting me here... I would have expected something a little more than this. At least a fake bad guy holding you captive or something!"
Nicole was ready with her cue. "Faith!" she screamed. "Look out behind you."
"Oh yeah!" Faith responded with a sneer. "I'm *really* gonna fall for that one."
Before Amy could shout a real warning, a huge two-by-four careened toward her and hit the girl in the back of the head. Faith's eyes rolled up in her head, and she toppled over the edge of the catwalk. Rio whispered a few words that lessened her fall. She hit the floor with only a small crack. Amy winced anyway.
Terrance let go of the two-by-four with his telekinetic grip, and it clattered to the floor. "Rio, Nicole, we've got to see if she brought her pet vampire along or not."
Nicole nodded, pulling her red hair up into a quick, serviceable ponytail. "I'll take the roof."
"Rio, take the perimeter," Terrance ordered.
"Rio?" Amy whispered, but he didn't look down. Instead he just nodded and headed out.
Terrance used his powers to pick up Faith and levitate her to a chair near the bed. He began to tie her up, too. His gaze fell on Amy. "I guess I was right about her all along. She really is too gullible to lead a team."
"You wish!"
His eyes widened dramatically when he realized that Faith was awake... and holding a wickedly sharp knife to his back. "If one thing in this room starts to float, Buster, I'll slit you open from the neck down and pull your spine out with my bare hands to use as a toothpick!" The girl's eyes flashed to Amy. "You OK?"
"I will be," Amy replied, "once I get out of these ropes."
"But... how... what..." Terrance stammered. He held himself straight keeping as much distance between him and the point of the knife as Faith would allow, which wasn't much.
Her face twitched into a flash of a smile. "Guess you're not the only one in this group who can act! Now, Terrance, let's see what we can do about Amy's ropes..."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
England: The Compound
Xander circled his adversary -- whom he'd nicknamed Electro Dude because of the sparks he weilded with a painful accuracy -- outside the Compound, oblivious to the burns on his back and arms from the last attack. Later they would hurt, but now Xander didn't have time for that.
A few feet away, Cordelia was facing off with a burly guard.
"Yer just a little bit of a thing," the guard said, frowning at her. "If you run home to yer mommy right now I promise not to tear your bloody head off."
Cordelia sneered at him. "I'd like to see you try, Buddy!"
The guard took her challenge as an invitation and lunged at her. Cordelia grabbed him by his shirt and flung him toward Xander. The guy was heavy, but she made it.
Xander saw the motion out of the corner of his eyes, and in a display of teamwork, he maneuvered Electro Dude into position. The guard hit Xander's opponent and sizzled with the deadly contact. Xander came up to the guy, now pinned by the guard's body, and knocked him unconscious.
"Good going, Chase," Xander called before squaring off against the next two guards springing in his direction.
"What can I say?" Cordelia replied, finding a grin. "I work out." She was actually enjoying this. The girls at home would never believe that Cordelia Chase was having fun getting sweaty and beating people up.
"Not enough."
Before Cordelia could turn around, someone picked her up from behind and threw her down. She felt her head crack against the courtyard wall and groaned. She opened her eyes and saw the blurry image of another guard coming after her.
"Don't think I'm going to underestimate you like Edmund did," the guard muttered.
The world was still spinning. Cordelia couldn't do anything. Then, suddenly, the guard grunted and fell to the ground. Cordelia looked up to see who her savior was and frowned. No one was there.
"Are ye alright, Princess?" a familiar Irish brogue asked, seemingly coming out of thin air.
"Yeah," she said as the world settled down around her again. She held out her hand for Doyle to help her up. She felt his tight grasp on her fingers, and then she could see him again. She knew that meant she was invisible, too. Cordelia darted Doyle a quick smile. "Thanks."
"Me pleasure, always," Doyle replied. Then he winked at her.
Cordelia felt a funny tremble in her stomach. Quickly, she turned away and began scanning the area. Xander was holding his own against a couple of guards, but Oz was surrounded by a whole group of them. She gestured, and Doyle noticed the same thing. As one, they began moving in that direction. Doyle stooped to pick up a rock with his free hand, and Cordelia mouthed the words, "One, two, three!"
On three, she let go of Doyle's hand a plunged into the fray. Doyle leveled one guy with the rock, and then he turned to check on Xander. The lad had downed the two guards, but his fight has stilled. He was staring at a tiny girl with big blue eyes.
Remembering what Xander had told them earlier, Doyle ran over and pushed the lad out of the girl's line of sight. "Are ye OK, Xander?" Doyle asked.
Xander rubbed his eyes. "Yeah. I just can't believe I was stupid enough to fall into her trap again. She was hiding behind one of the guards, and when the guard fell down, there she was, and I was staring into her eyes."
The little girl suddenly screamed, "They've got an invisible friend!"
At that, Xander got up, grabbed the girl by the arms -- being sure to point her away from his face -- and whispered, "If you don't shut up I'm going to have to knock you over the head like I did the other guys. I really don't want to do that..."
Suddenly, the little girl fell into silence. Both Xander and Doyle were surprised, but grateful. It seemed somehow very, very wrong to beat up a little girl, no matter what powers she had.
Moments later they were joined by Oz and Cordelia, who'd left a trail of unconscious guards and minions in their wake. And a couple of dead ones.
"It was hard not to kill them all," Cordelia said quietly.
"But it's not their fault the proconsul has hidden the truth from them," Xander added. "Especially the guards. They're just human."
"Guys," Oz said suddenly, "go meet Joyce. Get out of here."
"What are you talking about?" Cordelia demanded. "We're all going."
Oz shook his head. "I'm going back for Sonya. We just took out a big portion of their guards. They're bound to be weaker now. And I'm not leaving her here. I just can't."
"I'm going with you," Xander said suddenly.
"Me, too," came Doyle's disembodied voice.
"Me, three," Cordelia added with only one wistful look towards the gate.
"I don't want you guys to risk yourselves..." Oz said.
"No deal," Xander replied. "If you go, we all go." He glanced down at the girl in his arms. "And I think I've got a great idea about how to get the combination for that key pad..."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Sunnydale: The Warehouse Roof
Angel crouched on the roof, peering in through a skylight. He saw Faith, Amy and Terrance, but he couldn't see either of the other commandos.
"Looking for someone, vampire?"
Angel spun around to see Nicole standing behind him, a cold smile on her face.
"What are you doing, Nicole?" Angel asked. "I thought you worked to help people, not hurt them."
"I do," Nicole replied, her smile not wavering one iota. "There's just one more thing I... we need first, and I won't let a vampire and his minions stand in my way."
"That's a convenient way of looking at it," Angel challenged her. "How can you live with yourself?" While he talked, he started walking toward her.
Nicole held out her hands. "Don't move another step, vampire. Have you forgotten my powers so soon? I've been gifted with the power of fire... particularly deadly to one of your ilk. One more move, and you fry where you stand."
Angel froze, trying to think of a way out of this. But, Nicole was right. Her power could turn him to ash in a matter of moments. "All right, Nicole. What do you want me to do?"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
England: The Compound
It didn't take long for Oz, Cordelia, the invisible Doyle and Xander carrying Blue Eyes to make it back down to the bowels of the Compound. They met a few more guards on the way, but a Slayer-enhanced Cordelia and Oz were more than a match for any single opponent. They noticed that the alarm had been silenced. Maybe they'd thought one squad would be enough to kill them all?
Back in the white-tiled hallway, they came upon a man in a white coat hurrying towards the stairs.
"What are you doing here?" the man asked, his eyes widening. He looked around for an escape route, but he seemed to be cornered.
"He knows the passcode," Doyle hissed to Oz. "He's had quite a hand in torturin' Sonya and meself. He's called Charles."
Oz glared at Charles and grabbed the larger man by the collar. "You're going to let us in that room right now." He half-carried, half-drug Charles to the room holding Sonya.
"No," Charles replied. He was pale and shaking, but he stood his ground. "I will never tell."
"Come on, Blue Eyes," Xander urged, holding the girl up in front of Charles. "Do your thing."
"I'm hungry," the little girl whined.
"Get him to tell us what he knows, and then we'll feed you," Cordelia promised.
"Hungry," the girl repeated, reaching toward Charles with some kind of anger flashing in her eyes. "I want him!"
Charles's eyes went even wider, and he strained as far away from the girl as he could in Oz's tight grip. "No, no. Don't let her touch me! I'll open the door."
That wasn't what Xander had in mind, but it worked just as well. "Do it," he ordered.
Oz dropped Charles, and the frightened Watcher punched in the numbers on the keypad with trembling fingers. The lock clicked and Oz burst into the room. "Sonya!"
"Oz?" Sonya looked at him incredulously. "Is it really you?" Her face was pale, and there were dark circles under her eyes. Even with her quick healing factor, she was sore and wobbly as she sat up in bed. The tests she had undergone had strained the magic to its limits, and every successive healing took longer.
He rushed to her bedside and enfolded her in a tight hug.
"How did you get in here?" Sonya asked, returning the hug just as fiercely.
"We had a little help."
At Xander's voice, Sonya looked up to see him standing there, holding a little girl. Cordelia stood next to, of all people, Charles. A vengeful smile curved Sonya's lips as she pulled away from Oz. "Why, Charles, I see you've met my friends."
"I'm hungry!" the little girl said again.
"For Pete's sake, here!" Cordelia reached into her pocket and pulled out a peppermint she'd been saving for later. "Take this."
The girl ignored the mint. Instead she reached out and put her hands on Xander's bare forearms. Xander began to feel a tingle at the skin-to-skin contact. That was when the full weight of what the girl was doing and what Gwendolyn had told him kicked in. He dropped her. The girl landed on her feet. Her face seemed thinner. "I'm so hungry," she moaned, but she couldn't get close to anyone. Everyone was on their guard, but no one. wanted to touch her. Blue Eyes frowned, and then turned and ran out the door.
"What's wrong with her?" Cordelia asked aloud.
Xander looked at them, his eyes dark with worry. "She's dangerous. Very dangerous." He looked at Charles. The Watcher stared back at them, fear at being trapped obvious on his face. "He knows."
"I... I... won't tell."
Cordelia rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right! We've heard that one before."
"We've got to get that girl before she kills someone," Xander told them. "She's very deadly. Especially with that hypnotic power." Quickly he filled them in on what Gwendolyn had said, carefully omitting the name of his informant so Charles wouldn't know. "She could hypnotize someone and take their life force easily. All she needs is to get them alone."
Sonya glared at Charles. "That fits in with what they... he... did to me and Doyle. They wanted to take our powers..." The fury on her face gave way to concern. "Where's Doyle?"
"Donae worry. I'm right here, lass."
The disembodied voice, on top of everything else, was too much for Charles to take. He promptly passed out. No one bothered to catch him when he hit the floor. For a second, Oz looked like he was going to kick Charles while he was down, but the boy restrained himself.
"Sonya, Doyle," Xander said, taking charge again, "you guys stay invisible. Tie up Charles and then follow us. The Slayers and I will go ahead and try to catch Blue Eyes."
"It would serve them right if we just let her kill them all," Sonya muttered. She blushed when she caught the look Oz gave her. "I'm sorry. It's just..."
"It's all right," Xander said. He walked over and give her a quick, friendly hug. "You've been through a lot. I, for one, am just glad to see you again. But keep in mind, not all of the Council is bad." He looked to Oz and Cordelia. "Now, let's go." They nodded, and the three of them went out the door.
As Sonya watched, Charles suddenly floated over to the bed. As Sonya began to help tie him up, several things that she had accepted earlier finally formed cohesive questions in her head. "Um... Doyle? Why are you invisible? And what did Xander mean by Slayers?"