by Kayla
"Man, what is taking her so long! We were supposed to meet William back at the school ten minutes ago!" Xander tapped his foot impatiently as he and Jesse waited on Willow's front porch.
Jesse grinned. "Anxious to get back, huh?"
"What? I mean, no, just...you know. Research." He gave a weak chuckle, not meeting Jesse's eyes.
"Uh-huh." Jesse narrowed his eyes, adding mischievously, "So, William's pretty nice. It's hard not to like him, know what I mean?"
"Um...I..." Xander let out a nervous chuckle. "Yeah, he seems ok."
"Hmm. Kinda cute, too. I wonder if he's seeing anyone yet." He leaned casually against the porch railing, surreptitiously watching Xander out of the corner of his eye.
Xander blinked. "C-cute?" he squeaked. "You think he's cute?" For some reason, his heart started racing.
Whatever Jesse was intending to say in response was lost when Willow finally bounded out her door.
"Sorry," she gasped out breathlessly, "I was finishing up this report, and kinda lost track of time. I'm good now. Are we late?"
"A little," Xander replied weakly, still trying to recover from Jesse's little revelation. "The sun's going down soon."
"Oh." Willow stared out to where the sun was hovering just a little above the horizon. "Um, sorry," she apologized again. "We can still make it though, right?"
"If we hurry." Jesse took hold of Willow's hand and pulled her along. "Come on, Xander!" he called. "Don't want to keep William waiting!"
The trio hurried down the streets, nervously watching the lengthening shadows around them. They were only a few blocks from the school when it happened.
The sun was nothing more than an orange glow sinking completely below the horizon, and they were just passing one of the many cemeteries scattered throughout Sunnydale when a pair of grubby hands reached out and snatched Jesse.
Jesse let out a shocked yell and began struggling. His cry of alarm immediately drew the attention of Xander and Willow, who fumbled for the stakes they had taken to carrying with them.
"Let him go!" Xander shouted, leaping forward.
The vampire struck Jesse heavily on the temple, dazing him. He ducked Xander's uncoordinated attack, and shoved Willow away when she came after him as well. With a growl, he hoisted his stunned victim over his shoulder and sprinted off.
"Xander! He's getting away!" Willow struggled to her feet and raced after them, Xander close behind.
Through the deepening twilight they followed the vampire. "Man," Xander panted heavily, "how fast can these suckers run?" He dodged a low-hanging branch, nearly tripping over an exposed root.
Finally, they came to a halt just inside the crypt the vampire had vanished into, still carrying Jesse. Gasping for breath, they frantically scanned the gloomy tomb.
"Where are they?" Willow stepped further inside, squinting. "Xander! They not here!"
"They have to be here," Xander insisted. "There's no other way out!"
It was no use. They spent several terrifying minutes searching the crypt, but it was empty. And getting darker.
A rustling outside caught their attention, and they both wheeled around, clutching at each other. "W-we should go for help," Willow stammered.
"We can't just leave him!" Xander protested.
The rustling came again, louder this time. "We'll come back," Willow promised. "We'll get William and Giles and come back. We will find him, Xander."
After a moment's hesitation, Xander nodded reluctantly. "Right. Let's go."
Rupert sighed as he pored over the text. "'For they will gather and be gathered'," he read aloud softly, "for the Vessel pours life."
He frowned. "Pours life," he mused, carefully turning yet another yellowed page in the ancient book. His heart skipped a beat at the picture he found; a demon, surrounded by dozens of human corpses, transferring power to a weakened creature.
With growing concern, Rupert read on. "'On the night of the crescent moon, the first past the solstice, it will come...' Of course." He glanced up, eyes growing wide with horror. "That's tomorrow night!"
The squeak of door hinges made him look up. "Hello?"
William stepped forward, smiling gently. "It's just me." He looked around the library. "Where are the others? They were supposed to meet me here."
Rupert frowned. "They were coming back here? From home? It's getting close to sunset."
"I know. I-I'm worried. But I'm sure they're fine." He smiled weakly.
"Of course." He motioned his son closer. "Did you find anything of interest?"
"Perhaps. I pulled some old newspapers regarding a rather large earthquake in 1937. It seems that during the months preceding it, there were several inexplicable murders. See here..." he flipped through some of the printouts he'd brought with him.
"It's all coming together." Rupert sighed, rubbing his forehead wearily. "I rather wish it weren't."
There was a loud clamoring outside the library, then Willow and Xander, gasping for breath and rather disheveled, burst in. "J-Jesse," Xander managed to wheeze out between breaths.
Rupert jumped up. "Where is Jesse," he asked, growing alarmed.
"Vamp...jumped out...snatched...vanished..." Willow collapsed into a chair, hand to her chest as she tried to cal her breathing.
William hurried over to Xander. "Are you alright?" he asked in concern.
Xander nodded. "But...one of 'em grabbed Jesse."
"Good lord." Rupert hovered over Willow. "Are you sure you two aren't injured in any way?"
"We're fine," Xander insisted. "But we have to go back. I won't leave Jesse with one of those...things!"
"Tell me exactly what happened," Rupert urged.
Willow gave him a summary of the incident. With a look of shame, she finished, "I said we should go for help. I left him there."
Awkwardly, Rupert patted her shoulder. "There's nothing you could have done. You were right to go for help."
"How will we find him?" William asked. "We don't know where he might have been taken."
"Underground. It's the safest place for vampires. No sun during the day, and with the sewer system and other tunnels, they'd be able to get around almost anywhere."
"Yeah but...oh! Willow? Can you pull up the city plans and give us a map of the underground tunnels?"
Willow jumped up. "Yes!" She hurried to the computer. In just a few minutes, she had the required plans on display. Scanning through them quickly, she stopped and pointed. "There. I think that's it. It runs directly under the graveyard where Jesse was snatched."
Xander shook his head. "I don't see any access."
Rupert frowned. "Do I really want to know how legal this is?"
"No," Xander and Willow answered simultaneously.
"Ah. Right."
"Wait. Wait wait wait!" She pushed away from the desk excitedly. "That vampire dragged Jesse into the crypt, but never came out. And there was only one entrance, we would have seen him leave. It's there! The access to the tunnels must be in the crypt!"
"So what's the plan? We saddle up, right? Go get Jesse back?"
The three teenagers looked at Rupert, who sighed and nodded. "But," he added, "We go in prepared. Take whatever weapons you can carry. We have no idea what we'll find down there."
Jesse hissed in pain as the vampire jerked him carelessly along. He tried yet again to free his arm, but the vampire easily held it in his crushing grip. They rounded yet another corner, and Jesse stared in shock at the woman...vampire that had bitten him only a handful of days previously.
"Move," the vampire growled, shoving him forward into the cavern.
Stumbling, Jesse barely managed to keep from falling as the vampire led him a few more steps, then pulled him to a stop. He looked up in horror at the creature that stepped out from the shadows.
"Is this for me?" The Master grinned and licked his lips.
Jesse shuddered as a clawed finger pointed at him. This was by far the ugliest vampire he had seen to date. He had a very bad feeling about this.
His captor released him and spoke. "An offering, Master."
Darla stepped forward eagerly. "He's a good one. His blood is pure." She glared at the vampire who had captured the prey that had managed to escape her.
The Master eyed the healing wounds on Jesse's neck. "You've tasted it," he remarked, giving Darla a very disappointed look. "Why did you let him go free?"
"I-I didn't mean--"
"I have waited. For three score year I have been trapped here while you come and go as you please, toying with these scraps of food." He fixed her with an angry glare. "My ascension is almost at hand," the Master snarled. "Pray that when it comes, I'm in a better mood." He wrenched Darla's head back and hissed these last words in her ear.
Darla cowered. "Master, forgive me," she whimpered. "I was going to bring him to you before, but he escaped! There were others with him. I think one was the Slayer!" She swallowed hard.
"A Slayer?" The Master considered this. "She must not be allowed to interfere with the Harvest," he finally said.
Luke stepped forward, speaking at last. "I would never let that happen."
He waved a hand. "Don't worry about it. I believe she'll come to us." He turned a cruel gaze upon Jesse. "We have something she'll want. If she is a Slayer, and this boy lives, she'll try to save him."
Luke grinned and stalked over to Jesse, taking hold of him by the back of the neck. "Congratulations, boy. You've just been upgraded from snack...to bait."
"Go inside." Rupert waited until the three teens had entered the crypt, then turned and laid a row of crosses in the entrance. He took out a bottle of holy water and sprinkle it over the threshold and along the walls. Finally, a string of garlic bulbs were draped from a protruding stone. It might not keep vampires out, but it would certainly serve to warn them of any arrivals.
Meanwhile, Willow, Xander and William clustered around a sarcophagus in the center of the crypt. William eyed it distastefully. "Do you suppose there's actually a...?"
The others shuddered. "Don't even want to know," Xander stated firmly. He glanced around, snapping on the flashlight he'd pulled from his jacket pocket. "Come on, let's see if we can find the entrance."
They split up, each now weilding a flashlight. They had only been searching for a few minutes when William called them over. There was a recess in one of the dark corners, and a set of doors chained shut and padlocked.
Xander sighed. "I don't suppose either of you has a key for this?"
"They really don't like people dropping in," came a voice from behind, and the three whirled around.
"You!" Willow exclaimed. "It's the creepy guy who was following me and Jesse," she explained to Xander and William. "He's the one who was talking about mouths of hell and harvests."
Xander glared as he shifted in front of Willow, conveniently placing William behind him as well. "And I bet you don't have a key either, do you?"
The man chuckled bitterly. "They really don't like me dropping in on them, either."
"Oh? Why not?"
"They really don't like me."
William snorted. "How could that possibly be?" he muttered sarcastically.
The man eyed Xander. "Are you trying to protect her? Do you really think she needs it?"
"Hey, back off mister. I don't know who you are, I don't care. But you don't mess with my friends."
"Fine." With a shrug, the man looked around the crypt. "I knew you'd figure out this entryway sooner or later," he said, obviously speaking to Willow as he dismissed the two boys. "Actually, I thought it was going to be a little sooner."
"Sorry you had to wait." Rupert finally made his way inside and crossed his arms, studying the man intently. "And who might you be?"
After a pause, "Angel." Angel cocked his head as he looked at Rupert, then back at the three teens. "This is different."
Xander snickered. "Angel. Kind of a girly name, isn't it?"
"Xander." Rupert gave the boy an admonishing look and shook his head, then shouldered his way past Angel.
"Don't...don't go down there." He had a worried expression on his face.
"Deal with our going," Xander snapped back.
"You shouldn't be putting yourself at risk. The Harvest is soon. Unless you can prevent it, the Master walks."
"You seem to have some knowledge of this affair," Rupert remarked. "Why don't you stop it?"
"Because I'm afraid," Angel admitted.
William glowered. "And you think perhaps we're not? But we're trying to do something anyway. That just make you a coward."
Rupert examined the lock, then pulled out his wallet and leafed through it, extracting a thin piece of metal. He inserted it in the lock and, with a few deft movements, managed to open it.
Xander watched with awe. "Way cool. Hey, can you teach me how to do that?"
William merely smirked. "Why Father," he murmured. "Wherever did you manage to pick up such a fascinating talent?"
Rupert flushed slightly and cleared his throat. "Never mind that," he said briskly as he removed the chain and pushed the doors open.
"They'll be expecting you," Angel interjected as the group began to file inside.
Willow paused and looked back. "A friend of ours is down there. Do you know what it's like to have a friend?"
Angel lowered his eyes, an expression of unfathomable sadness washing over his face.
Willow bit her lip. "That wasn't supposed to be a stumper," she whispered. She turned back and walked past Rupert.
Angel watched them go. "When you hit the tunnels, head east towards the school," he called after them. "That's where you're likely to find them."
Rupert gazed back at him levelly for a moment, then nodded. The door closed behind them.
"Good luck," Angel finished softly.
