Chapter Seventeen
Buffy froze upon entering the main chamber, her anger already building into a raging inferno. "God…" was the only word that muttered from her crimson lips as she clenched her fists so hard her nails dug into her skin.
Hanging over the large black cauldron in the center of the cavern was Giles and some other innocent man. They hung by shackles on their feet with their backs bare. Blood dripped in slow rivulets from the raw and harsh looking slashes across their backs. The crimson creature stood near them, a large black bullwhip in his grasp, a cruel grin on his demonic face. Dawn stood on his side, her arm laced around his muscled one with an amused smile on her face.
Buffy! Thank god, came a desperate voice in her head.
Buffy's cold gaze found Cordelia's. She didn't even notice Cordelia coming up to her. Wha…what's he…
He's already started the ritual, Cordelia answered with sorrow in her voice. I tried to delay him but… She trailed off, her eyes following Buffy's to the sight before them.
What's it for, Buffy demanded. Her voice was hard, cold, and determined.
Cordelia swallowed, trying to blink back the tears that were forming in her eyes as she watched the blood drip agonizingly slowly towards the cauldron. He mixes his blood with the blood of the men and when we drink it, we become fully his. A full-fledged immortal demon with transformation powers and all…
Buffy bit the inside of her cheek as she watched, unable to tear her eyes away from the scene. She was angry that she could not do anything about it. She had to watch as the person she looked up to as a father slowly bleed to death. Plans, ideas, thoughts, or anything that could form in Buffy's mind was blocked by the pure anger and hatred she felt thrumming in her mind and pulsating through her skin.
"Not that I don't have that already," Buffy said aloud.
Cordelia gave her a confused look. "Buffy, what should we do?" Buffy remained silent and she turned her gaze back to Giles. "I…I don't think he's going to last much longer."
As if on cue, the crimson god cracked his whip in the air and nodded towards Dawn. Dawn smiled sweetly up at him, the perfect mask of an innocent child to hide the demon within. Buffy could nearly feel herself shaking with rage and knew that she was in demon-face by the two small fangs she could feel poking the bottom of her lip. She watched as Dawn roughly pulled Giles and the other man from above the cauldron, unlocked their shackles, and dragged them effortlessly back to the wall where Gunn and Wesley were waiting. Dawn turned towards them and they shrank back in both fear and anger. The brunette slowly sauntered towards them and removed their chains, despite their short attempts of struggle. Buffy and Cordelia watched in mixed horror and fascination as Dawn gestured for the two men to rise and they both complied eagerly. They seemed to be mesmerized as they kept their gazes locked on Dawn's golden orbs. With a flick of her small wrists, Dawn ripped both Gunn's and Wesley's shirts right off their backs, so quickly that if Buffy had blinked she would have missed it. Disgust suddenly ripped through the blonde Slayer as she watched her younger sister intimately caress both men across their bare chests with an evilly seductive smile on her otherwise angelic features. The young brunette slowly stepped back, the smile remaining on her lips, and motioned with her finger to follow her.
Buffy no! Cordelia exclaimed, as she saw Buffy start towards them.
The seer quickly grabbed Buffy by the arm, thanking whomever for the demon strength to stop the angry Slayer. Buffy gave her a desperate look, before returning her gaze back to her sister. Wesley and Gunn followed Dawn, with a look of complete adoration on their faces. Both men allowed their feet to be shackled and hung upside down over the cauldron. Both Buffy and Cordelia looked away as the first crack of the whip struck bare flesh. And both the seer and the Slayer wished they had anything but super hearing to drown the sounds of their tortured screams.
* * *
Faith strolled down the tunnel, stealthily as both her Slayer powers and newly acquired demon powers allowed. She paused, her eyes adjusting to the surrounding darkness and cocked her head to one side as her gaze fell on the ground. The footprints she had been following now split up into two different tunnels. She looked down one tunnel, her nostrils flaring as she sniffed the air.
I can't believe I'm following Xander's scent. What am I? A fucking dog? Well, I can be a bitch, Faith mused silently, making her nose wrinkle at the thought. She looked down the other tunnel, her brows wrinkling as she tried to identify the other scent that had mingled in with Xander's. Dammit! I hate making choices. Xander or mysterious dark warrior?
She glanced back down at the footprints. Xander's set was regular while the other set was set deep in, implying that the person or thing Xander was traveling with had taken the sword and split up with Xander. Faith looked down the tunnel Xander took and smelled the air again. It smelt salty and less earthy and damp. This tunnel led to an exit, probably near the beach. Xander probably left to find help. If there was any help left to find.
Faith sighed and ran a hand through her hair as she closed her eyes. Inside, she could feel a boiling rage, but not completely within her, almost like an echo of the emotion. Faith immediately knew it was Buffy and that Buffy was extremely pissed off, but there was also a sense of helplessness. Faith shrugged, she needed to clear her mind so she could help Buffy out. And to do that, she'd need to find a certain god's sword.
"Better be a good doggy and fetch," Faith mumbled to herself.
She started down the opposite tunnel, senses perked up in high alert. As she proceeded further down the earthen tunnel, she could feel her stomach start to churn and twist. A completely different feeling from her starving stomach, the empty void that seemed to be her stomach from the bloodlust. These were what she and Buffy called the 'vamp cramps'. But what would a vampire be doing down here? Especially in a lair of a god that is against them? But there was also something very familiar by this vampire's presence. As Faith moved further in, she caught a glimpse of red steel flashing in the small torchlight and the soft rustling of a leather duster.
Her senses immediately screamed danger and Faith ducked in time to dodge a decapitating blow to her head. She immediately wished for any kind of freaking weapon, as she backflipped to dodge a blow to her stomach.
Weapon…weapon…I need a fucking weapon, Faith's mind raced as she continued to dodge the sword swipes, yet couldn't see the assailants face.
From the corner of her eye, Faith could have sworn the shadows casting from the torchlight swirled and surged as if living, almost like the darkness that poured out of her. She didn't have time to think about it as she whirled around to dodge another blow that caused dirt to explode on impact. There wasn't enough room for Faith to fight in the tunnel, only for defensive blocks. She couldn't attack without getting hit by the pointy end of the sword. She somehow knew that even though she had an immortal body, any wound from that sword would be the end of her.
My kingdom for a fucking sword, Faith seethed angrily.
She saw the shadows again swirl and this time Faith reached into the shadows. Expecting her hands to just find nothing but the tunnel wall, she felt a hilt of a sword. With a smirk, she pulled on it and out of the shadows came a black sword, just as black as the shadows it came from, and parried the blow that was aimed again at her neck.
Well, what do ya know? B was right, Faith thought happily as she began her attacks with her newly acquired weapon. "So, are you gonna play nice and show your face or do I hafta impale you first to get a glimpse?" The attacker immediately stopped at the sound of Faith's voice and Faith smiled maliciously into the darkness of the tunnels. "What? Shy all of a sudden? C'mon, it's not like I haven't seen a pair of fangs before." She gave her trademark grin. "I'll show you mine if you show me yours?"
She could feel her incisors elongate and her claws burst from her fingers, but she was met with nothing but silence. She rolled her golden eyes in disbelief and amusement. With her infrared vision, she could only make out that the attacker was male and by the lack of heat, obviously a vampire. But she already knew that.
"Look, if you don't wanna play anymore, just say so…" Faith tapped the point of her sword impatiently on the ground. "And hand over the sword, cuz I kinda need that to defeat some evil Greek god." She shrugged. "I promise I'll come find you later and finish you off," she added as an afterthought. "I just need the sword."
There was silence for another few moments before the figure finally stepped into the light. Faith's golden eyes became impossibly wider as she instantly recognized her attacker.
* * *
Buffy's mind was completely numb, almost to the state of catatonia, as she slowly went to her knees along with the other women. It felt as if she were watching everything outside of herself, because she was so helpless to do anything. Next to her, the blonde Slayer could see the brunette seer visibly shaking in both anger and resentment as she, too, fell to her knees with the god's command. The ex-cheerleader met Buffy's gaze and gave a small nodded before looking up with one of the most forced smiles ever cooked up by the former May queen. Buffy inhaled deeply, before doing the same. From beside Dawn and their god, Willow and Tara went down on their knees in reverence. Tara sure did know how to act and Buffy hoped it wasn't because Willow had her under her thrall.
"The ritual is of near completion," the god said in his deep booming voice. "Drink of my blood and you will be like me, but to do that, I will need my sword; the only thing that can pierce my immortal body." His eyes scanned the room and found Buffy, kneeling with the other women. "Slayer, where is my sword?"
A sharp nudge to the ribs by Cordelia brought Buffy out of her own thoughts. "Huh? Oh…uh…"
Dawn smiled affectionately at her sister before running a hand up her Master's massive arms. "There was a prophecy, my Lord."
"What?" The creature looked down at his favorite with a frown on his lips. "Why did you not tell me of this before?"
"I thought you would have known what is guarding your own sword," Dawn replied annoyed. She rested her head softly on his arm. "Only the dark with the help of the light can retrieve your weapon from its guardians," she replied flippantly as if she were bored with the whole dilemma.
Buffy turned to Cordelia, her eyes wide. "Did you hear that?"
"Yeah, some prophecy thing again," Cordelia answered, rolling her eyes.
Buffy shook her head, tilting it to one side as if listening to something far away. "No…it's Faith…she found…" her voice trailed off as a smile graced her face and renewed determination and hope filled her eyes.
The creature growled in anger and frustration, making the women surrounding them hiss and snarl with him. "Damn you, Artemis! Goddess of whores!" He spun around, his black cape fluttering behind him like a trail of death, and faced Willow, motioning her up with a long talon under her chin. "Powerful witch, do a spell! Break the barriers…"
"The sword is gone," Buffy finally said from across the cavern.
The creature spun around with a cold expression on his face. "What?"
Buffy stood up as proudly as she can. "Can't you read my mind? I said it's gone, someone already took it."
"Who has it," the god demanded, his voice vibrating throughout the cavern, causing the walls to rumble slightly.
Buffy crossed her arms as a smirk appeared on her face. "An angel…"
As confusion settled on the god's blood colored face, a dark figure leapt down from the shadows, tipping over the cauldron on its way down. Blood spilled all over the ground, instantly being soaked up by the soil. The god roared in anger and looked up to face whoever dared to oppose him. The god's eyes narrowed as he noticed the intruder was wielding his sword.
"A vampire…" the creature's voice was full of disgust. "…who dares to touch my sword." His nostrils flared. "You stink of a soul."
Angel grinned, but the smile didn't touch the murderous look in his eyes. "Buffy, Cordy, get them out of here, I'll take care of the jolly red giant."
The creature's eyes widened as Buffy and Cordelia obeyed. He tried to grasp them mentally, but couldn't. They were never in his power. He growled in frustration and nodded towards the other women who instantly began fighting them. Dawn's murderous glare never left Angel as she disappeared down a tunnel. The god turned back to Angel and smiled.
"There is one thing you have forgotten about that trinket," the god spoke calmly.
Angel glanced at the red sword in his hands, concern quickly growing, but doing a great job hiding it. "Really? What's that?"
"That without Artemis' guardians…the sword is mine!"
With that, the sword disappeared out of Angel's grasp and reappeared in the hands of the wine god. He laughed maliciously as he adored his precious weapon, finally being able to touch it after all these centuries. Angel glanced out of the corner of his eyes to see that Buffy, Cordy, and Tara were busy enough fighting all the other possessed women while trying to free the men. The creature took this distraction to plant a powerful kick in the ensouled vampire's stomach that sent him to the other side of the cavern and slamming against the wall.
"A demon with a conscious…that cannot kill…how pathetic," the god spoke as he appeared in front of Angel.
Angel stood up, wincing at the pain that lanced through him. His eyes widened as the god brought up the sword. The vampire knew he was in for more pain.
Across the room, Buffy kicked another girl out of her way, threw another girl that was clawing away at her back, and bared her fangs angrily at a girl who was coming at her from the side. Through the corner of her eye she saw that Cordelia was holding her own and Tara was magically fighting Willow with balls of energy. She knew they couldn't last much longer. There was too much women. It seemed that with each girl she threw down, two seemed to take her place. And she knew that the women had a chance of being turned back to normal so she didn't really want to do that much damage to them, which was making it harder for the Slayer to fight. She quickly turned to see how Angel was doing and saw that he, too, was having a difficult time. He did, after all, have no weapon and was only dodging the god's blows and energy balls. But Buffy knew he was tiring, and tiring fast.
Angel spat out a ball of blood that formed when he accidentally let his face connect with the strong god's fist. He ducked and jumped in the air as the god tried to skewer him with his huge sword. As soon as Angel hit the ground he found himself flying across the air again as the god backhanded him. He landed on the ground with a heavy thud and rolled onto his back, too exhausted and weak to move on.
The god stood over him and placed a heavy hoof on his chest to keep him from moving, a triumphant smile on his face. "This is how it should be. A monstrosity like you should not be allowed to live." He raised his sword, right above Angel's neck, prepared to strike off his head. "Be grateful. For you, it will be quick. For others, it will be slow and painful."
With that, the sword began its deadly decent downwards and it seemed like time itself moved in slow motion.
"No!" Both Buffy and Cordelia shrieked as they caught a glimpse of what was going to happen.
Angel never left eye contact with the god, staring defiantly up at him as he waited for the sword to finish the job. Suddenly, like a bolt of lightening, something large, black and furry came out of nowhere and tacked the god to the side, the sword flying out of the god's hands and landing point down into the ground. As Angel sat up, he saw Faith stand up with a feral look in her eyes as she watched the god rise from the ground. The vampire also noticed a black swirling mass slowly disappearing into Faith and Faith either didn't notice or didn't seem to mind.
"You! How dare you," the god snarled. "Who do you think you are?"
Faith gave her trademark grin and reached into the shadows beside them and pulled out a sword from within the darkness. "I'm Faith, the Vampire Slayer, second half of the Chosen Two." She winked, her grin widening at the look of surprise and outrage on the god's face.
"Another Slayer," he growled.
Faith didn't bother to reply and swung her black sword at the god. He didn't move of course, expecting the blade to go through him but soon found himself staring in shock as the sword sliced through his skin and draw forth dark green blood. He looked at the dark Slayer in shock.
Faith shrugged, grinning like a little child. "What can I say? I'm blessed."
He roared in anger and moved away as Faith tried to slice him again. He formed an energy ball in his hands and lunged it at Faith. She leapt out of the way and rolled onto her feet, but the god appeared in front of her and slammed his fist into her temple, causing her to fly backwards and slam into the overturned cauldron. The god grinned wickedly and strode towards her, lifting his blade out of the ground in the process.
Faith caught her breath and moved her sword up in time to block the red sword that was currently on its way to her head. She dodged another blast of energy and flipped as the sword came rushing back at her. It seemed that wherever she moved, the god would appear waiting and ready for her. Plus, she knew that she wouldn't be able to kill him with her weapon, only his sword could finish the job. She swallowed hard as she dodged another volley of energy balls, knowing exactly what she needed to do. All she had to do was wait for the right moment.
Buffy felt Faith's presence as soon as she rescued Angel. She watched with both surprise and humor as Faith drew a sword out of the shadows, like the shadows themselves had formed into the weapon. She elbowed another girl in the face and quickly reached into the surrounding shadows for her own weapon. She drew out a pitch black quarterstaff and began swapping at the possessed women like flies, hoping that she can get the men out and help Faith before it was too late.
Blood dripped off both bodies as they circled each other. Faith realized she wasn't healing as fast as she should and knew it was because the god was getting weak and losing his power over them. She guessed it was because the lack of blood he was having and was amazed that her sword could pierce his skin.
Must be a Slayer thing, she thought silently.
She then noticed that although her wounds weren't healing his wounds were healing slowly and he would soon have full strength. After all, we was a god. And the only thing that could kill him was, ironically enough, his own weapon. She quickly rushed at him with full speed, whacking his sword out of her way as she tackled him back to the ground. Faith dropped her weapon and placed her hands over his, both gripping the weapon in a fierce battle of control. They both rolled to their feet, both still holding the weapon as if their lives depended on it, which it actually did.
Faith took a deep breath. Thanks for everything, Queen C…and B…I'm sorry…
At this, Cordelia jerked her head towards Faith, her eyes widening as she suddenly knew what Faith was going to do. She saw that the women were slowing and weakening, like the god was slowly letting go of his power over them. She quickly knocked out the few that were still fighting her and tried to make her way towards Faith. Buffy, too, wrenched her head towards her sister Slayer. Noticing that the women looked weaker and some were even looking around confused and disoriented. She whirled her staff in a deadly arc to rid herself of the fighting girls around her and fought her way towards Faith.
Faith, no! We're coming to help you! Buffy thought furiously.
Faith smiled and shook her head sadly. She then slackened one hand on the sword and the god immediately took advantage of her slackened grip and grabbed Faith, holding her against his chest in a hostage position. He laughed cruelly in her ear.
"You will always be second best," he whispered softly in her ear.
With that, he plunged his sword inside her chest. Faith could dimly hear Cordelia scream. She could feel the sadness and anger rolling off Buffy and she could see Angel staggering towards her. She fought through the pain in her chest, intent on completing her mission. She still had one hand on the hilt of the god's sword. With all the strength she could muster, she plunged the sword deeper into her chest, ignoring the mind-numbing pain as the tip went through her back and into the god's chest, impaling them both.
The god yelled in surprise, anger, but mostly pain as he felt the tip of his sword go through him. He fell backward, releasing his grip on the dark Slayer. He started to shimmer and flicker and before he even hit the ground, he disappeared in a flash of red light, leaving Faith to land heavily on her back. The impact caused the tip of the sword to move back inside Faith and she screamed in agony from the movement, causing more blood to flow. She couldn't believe she wasn't dead yet. Her hand still held on desperately to the hilt of the red sword and without even thinking, she jerked the sword out of her and threw it to the side. Her hands immediately flew up to stop the flow of blood, but even she knew it was already too late. She could feel her life slowly ebbing out of her from the gaping wounds in her front and back.
Angel was quickly at her side, pressing his hands over hers to help stop the bleeding. He scooped her up with his other arm, cradling her like a precious child as tears started forming in his eyes.
"Faith…" His voice choked with unshed tears.
Buffy pushed her way past the crowd of confused women, who were now returned to normal, intent on getting to Faith. From their Slayer bond, she could feel the echoes of tremendous pain and sadness rolling off the dark Slayer and Buffy could only send out waves of comfort. She finally made it to Angel's side and she could only stand and watch as tears formed in her eyes.
"Faith, look at me," Angel demanded, tilting Faith's head up to look her in the eye. "Don't you give up on me. Not now!" Her eyes became unfocused and her skin started to become increasingly colder. "Faith…don't do this. There are still things you have to do. You have…"
"Miles to go," Buffy said softly, as tears began to slide down her cheeks.
Cordelia finally made it next to them. Her hand immediately went over her mouth to cover up the sobs that began racking her body. Willow and Tara also came by the dying Slayer's side, only standing to offer their comfort and share their sadness.
Faith smiled weakly up at them, though she really couldn't focus anymore. "Tell Dawn I'm sorry for stabbing her in the leg, she…she was in my way." She gave a painful smile, blood dribbling down one side of her mouth. "Hey, no worries. At least you'll…you'll get another Slayer. Make sure she won't go psycho?" Her smile faded as tears began to form in her unfocused eyes. She could feel herself slowly draining away, she only had a couple more seconds to go. "I really am sorry guys…for everything…"
"It doesn't matter anymore," Buffy said weakly. "We still need you."
Faith smiled weakly at the comment. "No you don't. You got family and friends right here. Don't lose them."
With that, she exhaled giving her last shaky breath as she finally grew still. Angel howled in anger, causing the rest of the group to flinch in despair and sadness. The vampire then ran his fingers over Faith's face, closing her eyes. If it were not for the gaping hole in her chest and the pool of blood underneath her, it would only look like Faith was merely sleeping. Most of them wished she were while others felt guilty that it had taken Faith to die for them to finally forgive her.
* * *
Darkness. It was all around the figure that was laid peacefully out on the darkness. A small beam of light was the only source of light, coming from an unknown source and shining down upon the still figure. The darkness seemed to stretch out for all eternity and anyone who was smart enough would take refuge under the beam of light.
Suddenly, the figure's eyes snapped open. Dark brown pools immediately adjusted to the beam of light and the first thing she did was frantically touch her chest and gasp for air.
As soon as she heard herself gasp for air, a heavy door swung open causing more blinding light to stream in from the doorway. A figure stood in the doorway, silhouetted by the bright light and darkness.
"Time's up," a male voice said gruffly. "Get up."
"Wh-what?" Faith asked confused. "Where's Buffy? Angel? Cordelia…" Her eyes widened in shock. "I…I died."
The male guard walked in, tapping his hands threateningly. "No, but you will be in about five minutes. C'mon now…don't wanna be late for your own execution now, do you?"
No fucking way! That shit was not a fucking dream, Faith thought frantically as she let the guard shackle her. Shackles?
It was then that Faith got a good look at her surroundings. Instead of the typically blue uniform the guards usually wore, he wore an ancient looking military uniform. The shackles were made of iron, easily breakable, and the ground she walked on was dirt, not hard stone concrete. She was in a dungeon!
"What the fuck!" She deftly moved her hands apart, snapping the chain as if it were a twig and knocked the guard out before she even knew what she was doing.
Faith grew increasingly more confused as she saw that she was nude. Where the hell was she? Was this hell? Was that whole wine god dilemma back in Sunnydale just a dream? Or was this a dream? She found herself starting to get freaked out and she glanced down at her hands, holding them to the only beam of light. They were covered in faded scars. She glanced down at her chest, expecting to find a huge gaping hole in her chest, but it was smooth save for the two rugged scars on her side. She then gripped her neck, to where Cordelia had bitten her and found two small fading scars there too. A crazy smile appeared on her face, making her look more insane. It hadn't been a dream. So where the hell was she?