Chapter 13

            "Dawn…where are we?" Xander looked warily around his surroundings or rather the lack thereof.

            They traveled for what seemed like hours underground, in the dark earthen tunnels since Dawn and him escaped. Xander had no clue where they were and assumed Dawn did, considering she wove around the passages unrelentingly dragging him behind her without breaking pace. She was quiet for the most part of the journey and still there was no sign of a way out. It all seemed like one big maze.

            Dawn whipped her head back, almost angrily, but forced a smile. "Xander…we just need to get something okay?"

            "Get what? Dawn, we need to get out of here and get Buffy."  He sighed and kept pace with her. "Did…did you see Anya?"

            Dawn shook her head. "I told you. I didn't see anyone." She paused, realizing she had to play a better role. "I'm sure she's fine. I'm sure they're all just fine." She smiled secretly to herself.

            "No…I mean…she was different. She…" Xander shook his head, feeling his throat tighten at the memory. "I think she's a vampire…"

            Dawn stopped immediately and Xander crashed into her back. Had he been paying more attention, he would have seen that she didn't even budge as he fell flat on his butt. "What?"

            "I know…I'm not sure. I just…we were at the Magic Box. We were just talking and…and she changed into something." Xander rose from the ground, too blinded by grief to notice the uncaring look on Dawn's face. "She hit me…really hard. The next thing I know I'm…here." He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at her. "Wait a minute. Weren't you with Buffy? How'd you get down here?"

            "Same deal…only with Willow," Dawn replied casually. She continued down the passage. "Guess Cordy's vision is halfway complete. Look, I overheard the big red demon thingy talking about something. Something very important to him and we need to get it first before he does."

            "And you know where that is?" Xander rubbed the peninsula that formed on his head from Anya's hit. "This thing is like a labyrinth and I can barely see anything." He motioned around the tunnel only lit by torches spread in twenty-foot intervals.

            "I can see." Dawn turned down another tunnel. "This way," she replied as if not even listening to what he was saying. "We're almost there."

            "Almost there? How would you…"

            Dawn stopped at the entrance to a small room dimly lit by just two torches on either side of the wall. Above the entranceway was a symbol of a crescent moon with an arrow across it. A star speared the tip of the arrowhead. On one side of the moon was a tiger and on the other side was a wolf; both baring their fangs in a snarl as if in warning. Inside the room was a small marble altar with a huge red sword lying across it. They both could tell the sword was magical by the soft red glow that emanated from it.

            "…know…" Xander finished with a gulp.

            "Well, what are you waiting for? An invitation? Go get it," Dawn insisted.

            Xander raised an eyebrow. "Me? What about you?"

            Dawn rolled her eyes. "I'm keeping lookout. Besides…it might be too heavy for me to carry." She smiled sweetly at him, but deep inside she wanted to tear his throat out and taste the blood she found there.

            Xander swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat and nodded his head. "Okay…shouldn't be too hard…" He stepped into the room and looked back over his shoulder at Dawn who waved at him and urged him to go on. "…It's just a sword…in a small room miles underground where a big demon is lurking…nothing to be scared of…"

            As soon as he got within three feet of the altar, a ghostly image of a woman appeared in front of him, blocking his way. He screamed cowardly and jumped back, clutching his chest to see if his heart was still beating.

            Xander looked closer at the woman. She was just peering at him curiously, but she wasn't doing anything. Come to think of it, the woman was very attractive and were it not for the fact that she wasn't really there, Xander would be pulling his moves and manly charms on her.

            "What are you doing here…man," she asked curiously as if it were the oddest thing in the world. "You are a man…pure of heart!"

            "Xander!" Dawn exclaimed.

            The woman's gaze shifted towards Dawn and her countenance turned from sweet and kind to angry and disgusted. "YOU! You dare come near here! Leave at once!" She waved at Dawn and Dawn was flung against the wall by some invisible force.

            "Dawn!" Xander made a move to go to her, but the woman appeared in front of him again, blocking his way out. "Leave us alone!"

            The woman's brow furrowed in confusion and she glanced briefly at Dawn. "Dawn is gone and night has settled, she lives inside, in the darkness now." She motioned around him. "You are safe within these walls. Leave this sanctuary and you will perish."

            "What?"

            "You have been deceived, poor boy," the woman answered.

            There was a snarling sound and both the woman and Xander turned around to see Dawn glaring at them both. Her golden eyes shimmering with anger and fangs dripping with hot saliva. "Xander get the sword!"

            "Dawn…oh god…" Xander gasped. "Not you too." He shook his head and faced the strange woman again. "Who are you?"

            "I am Luna, the guardian of this sword." She motioned behind him towards the altar. "No one has come here in millennia's. The prophecy said it would be the light with the help of the dark that would come, but not a human…and certainly not a man!"

            "Xander, the sword! Give it to me!" Dawn screamed angrily. She couldn't get into the room. She tried but she was bounced back into the wall slightly smoking like she had almost caught on fire. "Xander!"

            "What…what am I supposed to do," Xander muttered, his words faltering with both grief and hopelessness.

            "I can not help you. I am bound here," Luna replied. "All is lost if the sword is returned to him."

            Xander looked from Dawn to Luna. "Who's 'him'?"

*           *           *

            The tall brunette slammed her briefcase down before moving her fingers across her temples. She hated losing cases and she especially hated that cocky smile she was getting from Lindsey even more.

            "Tough case?" Lindsey smirked from her office door.

            Lilah shot him a look and stood up, picking up her briefcase and switching off her desklamp. "Nothing I can't handle. It doesn't help that the incriminating weapon used in the murder is attached to the defendant…" A small smile crept into the corners of her mouth. "What about you? I heard vampire's are tough cases to crack…especially if sired by a nutcase herself."

            Lindsey's face darkened, but before he could reply a large cold hand grasped his throat and lifted him off his feet.

            "Speaking of said vampire…you wouldn't mind telling me where she is would you Lindsey?"

            "Angel," Lilah stated calmly.

            Angel glanced over at her, in full game face, and cocked his head. "Oh, hey Lilah, good to see ya. I'll get back to you in a sec, just gotta deal with a little problem." He squeezed Lindsey's neck a little harder at the word 'problem', which made him gasp. "Are you gonna answer or am I going to have to squeeze it out of you? Gotta tell ya, I hate it when brain matter gets splattered all over my shirt."

            Lindsey gripped Angel's forearm with his only hand, trying to loosen the death grip to let some oxygen enter his lungs and tried to speak. "I…d…don't…"

            "She's dead," Lilah stated, again with an eerie calmness in her voice. She set her briefcase back down on the table and crossed her arms. "She tried to raise a god." She shrugged flippantly. "Wrong god…and well, let's just say she lost her head in the confusion." Another smile graced her lips.

            Angel set Lindsey down, straightened Lindsey's tie, patted him on the shoulders, and brushed the invisible dust on his Armani jacket. "What are you talking about?"

            "It doesn't really matter, since you and your kind will be swept off the face of this planet," Lilah replied, not breaking eye contact with him.

            "Dead? But how would you know?" Lindsey fixed his dark gaze on her again, rubbing his bruising neck.

            Lilah's smile turned into a wicked grin as fangs erupted from behind her lips and her eyes flashed golden. She let out a high-pitched scream as she pounced towards Angel. Angel quickly rolled out of the way and smashed the nearest chair, taking out a sharp splinter in the process. Lilah rolled back onto her feet and laughed as she saw the makeshift stake in his hand. She dove at him again and this time Angel welcomed the attack and used the force to impale Lilah straight through the heart with the stake. She dropped to her feet, staring at the stake protruding from her chest with a lazy grin.

            "This is the part where I scream in defeat before you sweep me into a dustpan, am I right?" Lilah chuckled and pulled the stake out of her chest and whipped it back towards Angel, who caught it inches before it impaled his own chest. "Sorry to change the script on you, but I hate when things are so clichéd. My master wants you dead." She cocked her head to one side as if listening to something and backed off. "And I hate to disappoint, lover, but now is not the time. He'd rather let old flames do it." She blew him a kiss and crashed out the window.

            Angel got as near to the window as he could without being hit by direct sunlight. It was close to sunset, but the sun still blazed hotly in the sky. "Not a vampire," Angel muttered as he threw the stake uselessly to the ground.

*           *           *

             "Sunnydale," Buffy uttered confusedly.

            Cordelia gave her an odd look. "What? You're homesick already?" She rolled her eyes drastically. "It hasn't even been a week already."

            Buffy shook her head sadly, placing a hand on her temple. "No, there's…something…I dunno…I just have a sudden urge to go there"

            Faith's head shot up from where it was placed between her hands. "You too huh?"

            "It's Dionysus," Tara explained. "He's commanding us." She looked down at her hands. "I feel it too."

            "Oh," Cordelia replied blankly. "So that's what that is." She gave a false laugh. "And here I thought I was actually missing good ol' Sunnyhell." She sighed and started fidgeting with her hands. "What are we supposed to do? We can't just sit here the whole time while every female out there gets possessed."

            "I…I don't know." Buffy shook her head. "If we don't go, he'll get suspicious and if we do go, we don't know how to defeat him."

            "I'm sure a regular ass-kicking should do the deed," Faith spoke. "I mean, we're the Chosen Two, that's enough firepower to bring the god back down to earth and bury him right?"

            Buffy again stared at Faith as if looking at her for the first time, her eyes almost shining with regret though Faith and the others didn't notice. "We're not strong enough," she replied quietly.

            Faith gazed at her in surprise, but the look quickly faded and it was once again an emotionless mask. Why the hell is she being so nice to me? There's no way in hell she forgave me that quickly…or ever. "You sure about that? I feel pretty revved up to me. I mean, we got Slayer strength plus the demonic spirit strength and…" She broke off, suddenly remembering her new gift. She paused and concentrated and felt the darkness within her stir, waiting to be released. "B, how about we spar and see exactly how strong we are?"

            Buffy shrugged. "Couldn't hurt. We could use the training." She glanced at Tara. "See if you can find anything else on this god…any strengths or weaknesses we should know about. Cordelia…" She paused, thinking of something for the ex-cheerleader to do that could be useful. "You got some acting skills right? I need you to patrol the streets, see if you can estimate how much of L.A is already being taken. Can you do that?"

            Cordelia stood up and straightened her clothes. "I'm your girl."

            Buffy smiled gratefully and gestured towards Faith then towards the backyard patio. "Shall we?"
            Faith gave her trademark grin bowed towards the door. "After you."

            It was dark as they exited Cordelia's apartment. The backyard was just a small enclosed space of concrete and gave little room for any big moves like flips. Faith started stretching out her muscles while Buffy went to a corner and sat down, drawing her knees up to her chest with a distant look in her eyes. Faith eyed her warily, wondering what was up with her fellow Slayer. She's been acting weird since being changed.

            "C'mon B, you can't spar if you're already on your ass. Plus, it isn't any fun if I wasn't the one who put you there," Faith added.

            Buffy finally focused her gaze on the Dark Slayer looming in front of her. "I saw you...when you bit me..."

She said it so soft that if it weren't for Faith's Slayer hearing she wouldn't have heard it at all. "Yeah, I saw them all too. What's the big?"

            Buffy shook her head slowly. "No, I saw you…I saw everything."

            "B, what the fuck are you talking about? Get up and fight me already or do I have to remind you of who I am?" Faith crossed her arms impatiently.

            "I saw when you went to the Mayor…after Finch…"

            Faith flinched at the name. "Yeah, we both had starring roles…"

            "Your childhood…" Buffy continued as if Faith hadn't spoken at all. At the mention of 'childhood', Faith froze. "…before you were the Slayer. I saw you…I saw everything." Her eyes were glazed as if she couldn't focus on anything. "I could feel what you felt…"

            "Wha…what?" Faith's voice trembled, memories of her childhood flashing through her mind.

            Buffy stood up, her eyes wide as she gazed at Faith. "You didn't betray us…you wanted to make up to us by going to the Mayor, but it backfired." She was speaking rapidly as if trying to read quickly from a book, almost hysterically. "He was so nice to you, he paid attention to you, he was always there for you, he cared for you, he was like the father you never had, and you couldn't help but fall for him. You'd do anything he'd say just to make him proud, just for a pat on the head because you had no one and you now had him." She paused; her face suddenly becoming a mask of sorrow. "They way we treated you…Giles was right. We only used you just like everyone else you ever knew. You were always used and thrown away like garbage…"

"Buffy stop!" Faith shook her head, not believing her ears. How could she know? How did Buffy know all of those things? The things Buffy were saying were things only Faith could know and they were bringing up bad and painful memories.

However, Buffy kept rambling on as if Faith hadn't spoken. "We never paid any attention to you unless you were needed. We never invited you to go patrolling with us, or Bronzing…" Buffy suddenly clutched her stomach as if she were sick, tears forming in her eyes, as her other hand went to rest on the wall as if to hold herself up. "Oh God…your Watcher…"

Faith stiffened, memories flooding through her mind of that night bringing with it hate and anger. "Buffy," she whispered helplessly, tears stinging her own eyes.

Again, Buffy ignored her. It was as if she weren't there at all; like the torrent of memories Buffy was seeing had to be let out through her mouth. "…what he did to her." She clutched her mouth as if she were going to vomit, the memory alone too much for her. Her countenance changed again from sick and horrified to a mixture of rage, hate, and fear. "Your mother…Shane…"

At those names, a burning rage ignited within Faith. Her eyes blazed a terrifying gold and she was suddenly covered in the black swirling mass. Seconds later, the mass was absorbed within itself to reveal a roaring black panther. It snarled angrily at her and retreated to a dark corner where it disappeared into the shadows.

Buffy gazed at the panther with rage burning in her own eyes, but it wasn't directed at Faith, it was directed at the demons that plagued Faith's past. She couldn't believe what the younger girl had gone through and admired the strength she had to endure it all and make it this far without anyone. However, what was done to Faith was unforgivable and undeserving. The anger she felt towards those people who always treated her wrong, herself included, blazed within her, stirring something inside her she felt before. She always felt it right before the kill or during the chase. She realized that it was a part of her, something not to be ignored like what she had done to Faith. It was part of what made her a Slayer and to ignore it would be ignoring her power. She finally realized she had to embrace all of what being a Slayer was, the good and the bad, the darkness and the light and in doing so, she would fully accept her Calling and her burden. Just like Faith.

She closed her eyes and focused on it, drawing it out, fueling it with her rage and hate. When she opened her eyes again, she saw that an identical black mass had formed around her like a protective bubble. It was swirling and churning as if it were alive. She let it consume her, embracing it for all that it was and a second later a golden panther stood in her place, its eyes flashing a brilliant blue.

It walked in a circle as if getting its bearings and moved towards the corner where the black panther lurked. It stopped in front of the snarling black panther and stood calmly.

Faith, I know you can hear me. Just listen.

The black panther glared angrily at the goldend one, both looking exactly the same except the black one looked more emaciated and beaten than the other. Its tail twitched in anticipation as if ready to pounce.

You could ignore me like we did to you or you could be different from us and the rest of the world and listen to what I've got to say.

The dark panther stopped prowling and sat on its hind legs. That's the problem, B. I've been listening. I'm always listening. Her voice sounded tired and defeated.

I know you. What you did in the past…it's understandable and I understand. Everything that we did to you…I know…I felt it…I saw it…and I understand…

So you like what you saw? You get a good show? Faith's voice now sounded bitter and resentful. Oh, poor Faithy, her life was so fucking hard that she went psycho! Forget it, B. I don't want to hear it. I don't need your pity. What happened to me will never excuse what I did. I still made those choices, that was all me. I chose to go to the Mayor. I chose to hurt you. I chose to kill. Her voice cracked at the last word. The only reason you know me is because you somehow got my memories. Without that, you would never…

Forgive you? Buffy finished.