Chapter 71

Connor and his band of Jasmaniacs had finally located the room where Buffy, Wesley, Gunn, Fred, and Lorne were hiding, and they were charged in fighting. Wesley and Gunn had taken loose pipes and used them as makeshift weapons against their attackers. Fred elbowed a man in the face. Lorne used his hockey stick to push an aggressor away. A man pointed a gun at Fred and cocked it. He didn't get the chance to fire because Buffy tackled him to the ground.

"Buffy!" Fred yelled.

The Slayer didn't hear her though. She was too busy beating the man under her to a bloody pulp. Everything about Buffy the person was gone and the Slayer had taken over completely. Anything that wasn't friend was killed or beaten into a coma. Behind her, Fred was pushed to the ground, and a man pointed a gun in her face. Another person knocked Lorne in the head, and Lorne fell to the ground. Buffy and Wesley were the only ones still fighting back. They were definitely holding their own against the attackers until Wesley was face-to-face with Connor. Connor knocked Wesley halfway across the room. When Wesley looked up, Connor was standing over him with a sword. Suddenly, just as Wesley was knocked into unconsciousness, Buffy tackled Connor. She prepared to swing, but then something about Connor made her stop. Then, Buffy the person kicked back into the driver's seat and Buffy pulled her hand away.

"What are you doing Connor?" Buffy asked.

He didn't answer. Instead, ten men came up and grabbed Buffy. They held her at bay as Connor stood up. Everyone was bound behind their backs and now they were kneeling in front of everyone. Connor knew he couldn't tie Buffy up without her getting lose. He had seen her break solid steel cables effortlessly. So, he had the men hold her. She struggled, but the more she did, the tighter the grips got on her skin and her left arm started to go numb from lack of blood.

Connor paced in front of them. "What did you think you could do? Poison the whole city with your hate? Your tricks? Now I have no choice but to kill you."

"Connor.." Buffy started, but the men tightened their grips. "Ow."

"Shut up. All your talk about saving the world. Well.. now somebody's gone and done it. Made everything right.. and good. And you can't stand it because you're all so full of yourselves. Don't you get it? You're all alone now. All of you. You're the ones left out in the cold. You.. don't.. belong."

"If belonging means following some bogus god and killing in her name, then you're damn right we don't." Gunn said.

"I'm not listening to your lies."

"Jasmine's the lie." Wesley said. "You've no idea what she is."

"Yes, I do. She's mine." Connor raised the sword to strike.

"Connor, wait." A man said in Jasmine's voice. "Bring them to me."

"Why?"

"Has it become necessary to explain my wishes to you?"

"No, just.."

"Then be a sweet boy and bring them. Intact." Connor put down his sword. "Thank you, Connor."

"Get up." Connor said to the group.

They were led out to a large containment van that looked similar to the one Buffy remembered being put in while she was in Faith's body. The van rumbled to a start and Buffy looked at Wesley. "I'm sorry about all of this."

"It's ok. You were right to make us see." Wesley said.

"I meant, I'm sorry I didn't kill Connor."

"Why would you do that?"

"It's a way to get to Jasmine. Kill her father.. Kill part of her."

"It wouldn't have done anything but gotten us killed." Gunn said. "Jasmine woulda just had the National Guard kill us."

"I was doing a pretty damn good number on them until I had to take on Connor. I just.. I can't bring myself to kill him. I carried him for nine months, went through all the pain of giving birth to him, and it was all just to bring Jasmine into this world."

"At least we get to live, right?" Fred asked.

"I wouldn't call this living, Fred. Maybe you guys could call it living, but.. You'll never know how bad it hurts to give up that love."

"Of course we do." Wesley said.

"She means giving up Connor." Lorne said. "It's obvious that he doesn't want her or Angel anymore. Connor's got Jasmine now."

Buffy looked down at the floor. "Maybe Angel was right in the first place. Maybe we should've stopped Connor from coming into this world. Then we wouldn't be here."

"You would've been even more miserable because you wouldn't have known if Connor was going to be good or not." Fred said.

"No more miserable than I am now. I would've still had Angel. Now, he's gone and I may never see him again and my son.. I don't have one anymore." Tears fell to the metal floor and Lorne scooted closer to Buffy. She laid her head down on his shoulder and cried.

When they arrived at the hotel, they were led upstairs to Jasmine's room. A small crowd of followers left her room as Connor brought them in. They were still bloodied from their battle in the sewers. Jasmine observed them. "So much pain, suffering.. must hurt so terribly."

"Don't get all gloaty. Not the worst beating we've ever taken." Gunn said.

"I meant the pain you've caused yourselves.. letting go of me."

"Oh, by giving up absolute tranquility and perfect happiness? No loss. Right, guys?" Lorne said. "Guys?"

"I only wish it was within my power to take you back."

"Nobody asked." Buffy said.

Jasmine looked over at Buffy and noticed the tear tracks on her cheeks. "Where's Angel?"

"You're omniscient. You tell us." Connor backhanded Buffy in the face. She barely flinched.

"Connor, please. I don't want to see that."

"The creature in the sewer. You recognized it, didn't you?" Wesley asked.

"Yes."

"Just another one of your zealots?"

"A sentient, living being wanting what's best for his own. Is that so wrong? A few millennia ago, his world was not unlike yours. Full of hatred and fear, wars scarring its landscape."

"Until, let me guess, you came along and made it a paradise." Gunn said.

"Well, as much of a paradise as one could with a bunch of insects to work with. I helped them along. Kicked their evolution up a few ticks."

"And how'd that work out for 'em?" Lorne asked.

"It was a trial run, an early experiment to work out the bugs, so to speak. I won't make that mistake again. I know where Angel is, and I know what he's looking for. He's wasting his time."

"If you really believed that, you'd have killed us already." Buffy said.

"Patience."

"Yes, ma'am?" A girl asked, walking into the room.

"The news people have started to arrive. Please ask them to set up in the lobby. I'll be ready to speak with them after I've eaten."

"Mm-hmm." Patience walked out.

"So it's time, is it?" Wesley asked.

"Time for what?" Gunn asked.

"Too much trouble conquering a primitive dimension, wasn't it, Jasmine? Or whatever your name is. Must be nice for you that we have satellites to beam your message to the rest of the world."

"You're not wrong." Jasmine said.

"Oh, God." Fred said. "Connor, you can't let her do this. She'll enslave everyone."

"She'll bring them together." Connor said.

"You don't.. She's not what she pretends to be! She's.."

"A monster." Buffy finished.

"Yeah. Cordy's blood that we put in you, it was supposed to break the spell. Show you what she really looks like."

"I know what she looks like. She's beautiful." Connor said, looking at Jasmine.

"Gentlemen, please show our guests to their accommodations." Jasmine said.

Guards escorted Buffy, Wesley, Gunn, Fred, and Lorne out of the room. Wesley looked at Jasmine. "Save us the euphemisms. We're bargaining chips to keep Angel quiet."

"Quiet about what?" Connor asked.

Buffy didn't hear the rest. She and the others were taken down to the basement and put in the cage they had used for Angelus. Connor closed them inside the cage and started to walk away, but Lorne called after him, "I just gotta know one thing. The reason our little blood ritual didn't raise any veils for you. You've always seen Jasmine's true appearance, haven't you?"

"You gotta be kidding me." Gunn said. "You know what maggot-face looks like, and you're still big with the worship?"

Connor glared at Buffy. "I grew up in Quor-Toth, a hell dimension full of all sorts of things you can't even imagine. So, you know, appearance? Not that important to me."

"What is important to you, Connor?" Buffy asked.

"Not us, apparently. Or his own parents." Gunn said.

"What about Cordelia?" Fred asked. "She needs help, medical attention. I mean, who knows what that coma's doing to her?"

"She's fine." Connor said.

"Are you sure? Have you checked on her? Connor, if you don't care for her, then.."

"She isn't.. she's been moved."

"Moved? What do you mean?" Buffy asked.

"Someplace safe, OK? She's taken care of, so just quit.."

"Connor, what does Jasmine eat?" Wesley asked.

"What?"

"The creature in the sewer. It called her the 'devourer.' Devourer of what?"

"I don't know."

"Don't you? The followers she randomly chooses to come to her room. The ones she sent to meet her in the banquet hall."

"They're the banquet." Lorne said.

"Wait." Gunn said. "People? She eats people?"

"Oh no." Fred said.

"'To Serve Man.' It's 'To Serve Man' all over again."

"And now she's going global."

"You don't think Cordy's.."

"I hope not, but we really have no way of knowing, do we?" Wes said, looking over at Connor.

Connor didn't respond. He turned abruptly and walked up the stairs, leaving them unattended. Buffy snorted. "I know I taught him better than that."

"Be glad you didn't." Gunn said.

Lorne sat down. "Well, I'm just going to get comfortable. I have this nagging feeling we're going to be here for a while."

Buffy sat with her back against a wall, arm propped up on her knee, and stared at the wall that she and Angelus had had sex on. Things seemed so much better back then compared to this. Even if she had been really evil. She didn't know exactly how long they had been stuck down here, but it had been a heck of a long time. Wesley stood, leaning against the wall, Lorne was still sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall, Fred was pacing nervously in the corner, and Gunn was kicking the door to the cage. He had been at it for a while.

"I mean, starting not to look so good for us. Not that I'm giving up or anything." Fred said.

Gunn kicked the door again and Lorne glared. "You can stop that anytime now."

"I will.." Gunn said with a kick to the door. "Just as soon as somebody comes up with a better idea.." Kick. "To get us out of here. Or the Slayer decides to get up and kick it down with her super strength."

"And then what, Gunn?" Buffy asked. "The anti-Jasmine crowd's about to become a staggering minority on this planet."

"Yeah, well, first things.." Kick. "First. We'll worry about that when the time comes."

"Bell's rung, babe. Time's come." Lorne said.

"Weird.. Connor walking out like that, you know? Leaving us unguarded." Fred said.

"Yeah. If he's not careful, we might move about freely in our impervious 10 by 9 steel cage." Buffy said bitterly.

"Maybe we were getting to him." Gunn suggested.

"More than likely, her godliness summoned him for a little tender-lovin.." Lorne started.

"Blood." Wesley said.

"Is that some kind of ritual she has him doing?" Buffy asked. "Cause.. Ew."

"What? Oh, no, I was just thinking. Cordelia's blood, it had the same power as Jasmine's to break the thrall she had over us."

"So I figured. Mother and daughter, they share the same blood."

"And now she's been moved.. Why?"

"Guess so people like us don't use Cordy's blood against Jasmine." Gunn said.

"There are no people like us. Not anymore. We're it. She had us on the run. And if Cordelia's so dangerous to her, why not kill her and be done with it?"

Buffy caught on. "Because maybe she can't."

"Exactly. I think Jasmine may be dependent on Cordelia. She can't hurt her, not without hurting herself. But maybe Cordelia can hurt Jasmine."

"That's a whole lot of maybes." Gunn said.

"Maybe, but if I'm right, Cordelia might be our only hope to stop Jasmine."

"If we can wake her up." Lorne said.

"Wake her?" Fred asked. "We have to find her first."

"No, we have to get out of here first." Gunn said, resuming his kicks on the door.

Upstairs, the crowd cheered in the lobby. Fred looked up. "What's that?"

"Jasmine's world debut, I expect." Wesley said.

"So.. we're alone. It's just us now." Buffy said.

"That's all, folks." Lorne said.

A familiar presence startled Buffy's senses and she closed her eyes, willing herself to ignore the other's banter. She pushed away all of the noises from the basement and listened intently upstairs. Angel's voice floated to her. She couldn't understand what he said, but Jasmine didn't like it one bit. Suddenly, screams sounded just after a loud hissing noise.

"What in the hell is goin' on up there?" Lorne asked.

"It didn't sound good. I don't know what.." Fred said.

Gunn kicked the door. "I'll tell you what it was. The devourer chowing down." Kick. "And I bet you we're dessert."

"Gunn, will you stop wasting your.."

Buffy cut Wesley off when she jumped to her feet and grabbed the bars on the door. Summoning all of her strength, she ripped the lock in half and swung the door open. "Let's go."

They ran upstairs and searched the place. A few people were running out of the building, but nobody significant. Buffy knew Angel was back and she took off out the door. No one saw her leave though. Gunn walked into the lobby and found the others waiting there. Wesley looked at him. "Find anyone?"

"We got ourselves a ghost hotel." Gunn said.

"Garden's empty. This is incredibly creepy." Fred said.

"Only in a post-apocalyptic 'Night of the Comet' kind of way." Lorne said.

"Do you think they're all.."

"Dead?" Lorne held a remote control. "Dead air. TV stations going off line. Something big went down."

Gunn picked up a decapitated head. "Yeah. And here's its head."

"Angel." Wesley said.

"You sure?" Fred asked.

"Buffy, can you sense.. Buffy?" Wesley looked around. "Where's Buffy?"