Odette leaned against a wall along the entrance of the Bronze. They had decided to split up. Giles, after a very long agonizing debate, had taken Willow and Buffy to her house to get the supplies she'd mentioned. Meanwhile, Xander and Odette would head to the Bronze. Odette had thrown a high-necked jacket on, which covered the curve of her neck, as well as the bruising that was quickly forming.
Arms crossed she scanned the room again. She couldn't tell if the vampires were there already or not. She didn't recognize any of the faces in the crowd from the other night. Thankfully that also meant Axel wasn't anywhere to be seen either. She shuddered, absently rubbing at her covered shoulder. Catching movement from the balcony she glanced up and saw Xander leaning over the railing. After catching her gaze, he shook his head.
"Damn." She hissed under her breath. Turning her attention back to the dance floor she saw Cordelia and her mini-me's in the center of the crowd. She almost envied the Queen Bee for a moment, dancing out there in blissful ignorance of the disaster that could potentially unfold. As the song started to fade, and several individuals started exiting the dance floor, Odette winced at a sharp pain from the bridge of her nose. She turned, pushing herself off the wall, to go get bottle of water from the bar, and had to swallow back a shriek as she nearly barreled into a familiar, if considerably paler, figure.
"Det." He purred, eyes flashing briefly from brown to yellow.
She took a tentative step back, glancing out the side of her eye, But Xander was no longer on the balcony. "Jesse." She acknowledged shortly.
He cocked his head to the side, glancing lazily around the room. "What? Here by yourself Det?" he clicked his tongue disappointedly but bared his teeth, which appeared thankfully flat, as he grinned. "You trying to play Paul Revere?" he leaned close and whispered, "The vampires are coming, the vampires are coming." He taunted, snickering.
Odette glared but peered up into his face. At his raised eyebrow she bit her lip. "Jesse, come on man. This isn't you. You've got to be in there somewhere. You know this isn't right."
He chuckled, "Oh no, no Det, nothing has ever felt more right than this." Straightening to his full height he looked down his nose at her. "Jesse was an excruciating loser who couldn't get a date with anyone in the sighted community. Look at me, I'm a new man." He reached forward, faster than she could blink and closed his hand around her elbow like a vice. "He had good taste however."
She struggled as he tugged her toward the dance floor. He leaned down, whispering, "Play nice Det, you can either dance with me or I start draining everyone in reach."
Grimacing Odette allowed him to pull her into a slow dance. She stared daggers at him. "Your wrong, Jesse was a better man than you could ever hope to be, you parasite."
He opened his mouth to retort but the lights suddenly went dark, and then the thing that was wearing Jesse's body, disappeared. A rumble, that reminded her an awful lot of a tiger growl, echoed throughout the club. A spotlight illuminates the stage. And after blinking her vision clear Odette swallowed hard. Luke was standing, center stage, his face morphed, and the harvest symbol vividly displayed on his forehead. A few paces behind him Axel stood, arms crossed and eyes scanning the crowd. Odette ducked slightly behind several others.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, there's no cause for alarm. Actually, there is cause for a alarm. It just won't do any good."
Odette flinched slightly as Xander appeared at her side, breathing heavy, "They have all the doors blocked. We're trapped."
Odette snarled, "Like fish in a bloody barrel." She turned to him, "Where are the others? They should have been here by now."
Before he could answer their attention was drawn the stage again, Luke certainly had a flair for the dramatic. "This is a glorious night. It's also the last one any of you shall ever see. Bring me the first."
"What do we do? Odette hissed as they watch the large bouncer be dragged before the terrifying vampire.
"What do you guys want, man, you want money? Man, what's wrong with your faces." The bouncer whimpered.
Ignoring him, Luke dragged the man closer. "Watch me people! Their fear is like an elixir. It's almost like blood." Before Odette or Xander could move he sank his fangs into the man, draining him almost instantly. The mark on his head glowed a faint red, and chaos erupted in the club, people screamed, scrambling for the exits only to be brought up short as the fanged guards hissed at them.
Odette ground her teeth; fists clenched as she heard Luke demand the next victim. Trying to decide the best course of action they catch sight of Jesse arguing with Darla about Cordelia.
Xander starts in their direction, "We've got to get over there before Jesse does something stupider than usual."
Odette grabbed his arm and yanked him back. He looked ready to argue until he saw the fury in her eyes. "That fucking thing is. Not. Jesse. He's an evil bastard who as access to his memories and his parading around in his body like a freaking suit. You can' t show him mercy because he wouldn't consider extending the same curtesy to you!"
His brow furrowed, "you're saying we just give him up? That we shouldn't even try to save him?"
Odette shook her head glaring at the corpse of their childhood friend. "We aren't looking at Jesse, Xan. We are looking at the thing that killed him."
Luke started pacing on stage, looking like someone who had one to many cups of caffeine.
"I feel the master's strength growing. I feel him rising. Every soul brings him closer. I need another. Tonight, is his ascension. Tonight, will be history at its end. Yours is a glorious sacrifice. Degradation most holy. What, no volunteers?"
As Darla began to drag Cordelia forward, Odette decided she couldn't wait for the others to show up. She reached for a nearby chair, and smashed it on the ground, startling everyone around her. wooden shards scattered about the room and Odette reached down and took one in each hand.
"These bloodsucking assholes are strong, but not invincible. They die like everything else if you shove a stake through their heart." She glanced around at the terrified patrons. "Now I'm not saying anyone has to be a hero, but I certainly would prefer to have some semblance of defense when they try to kill you." While it didn't get everyone moving, a handful of them grabbed pieces of the shattered chair. And a throughout the room several other wooden furniture fixtures were sacrificed to arm the patrons.
When Odette turned back to the stage, it took all her willpower not to back away as Axel stalked forward into the spotlight beside Luke.
" Hello little bird, you miss me that much already?" he purred eyes glued to her shoulder as if he could see through the jacket to the mark he had made.
She snarled, widening her stance. She may not have done much other than a few basic self-defense courses, but it was better than nothing. "Oh I promise you," she said raising on of the make shift wooden stakes in her fist, " I won't miss you this time."
He smiled, growling. He face morphed, his eyes going more gold than green and his fangs elongating. However, as he moved to step forward, a different vampire is thrown down on the stage from the balcony. All eyes glanced up to see Buffy leaning casually on the railing.
"Oh, I'm sorry, were you in the middle of something?"
Luke grinned almost euphorically. "You!"
Buffy lost all her levity instantly. " You didn't think I'd miss this, did you?"
"I hoped you'd come."
"Be right down." in an impressive feat of flips buffy dismounted the railing and landed on a pool table. One of the vampire guards charged her from the side, which without even taking her eyes off Luke, Buffy grabbed a pool que and impaled the charging vampire on it. Odette gawked as Buffy shucked off her coat while the vampire turned to dust at her feet.
"OK, vessel-boy. You want blood?"
Luke grinned, cracking his neck muscles in anticipation. "I want yours. Only yours."
The slayer shrugged, "Works for me."
As she cartwheeled up on stage the other vampires burst into motion. Odette ducked a swipe overhead, twisting and shoving the steak in her fist between his ribs. He coughed, and disintegrated in the next instance, mostly all over Odette.
"Gross," she hissed, attempting to brush off the dust. "I have dead vampire in my hair." The next several minutes where almost a blur, attempting to keep those around her alive while trying to keep an eye on her new blond friend on stage. That was until Axel appeared in front of her.
"You're being such a bad pet. I reckon I'm gonna be in heaps of trouble with sire for this little stunt."
She thrust the stake toward his chest, which he easily sidestepped. "Now really pet, you've got to pull your head in. You make a nuisance of yourself and sire's gonna get very agro with me."
Her next swipe with the stake was met with his fist closing around her wrist. A sharp twist forced her to drop the sharp chunk of wood with a clatter. She struggled but he leaned forward, his eyes bleeding from green to gold. "Enough pet."
Odette mind screamed as she felt her muscles go slack. Staring into his gold eyes, she felt her will fade. It was like she was stuck behind a wall in her mind, banging at it as she watches her body refuse to obey her. As Axel grinned triumphantly his gaze flickered down to her shoulder, his fingers pulling the jacket aside. As he leaned down Odette felt rage burn through her body, her very blood.
"NO!" she screamed, and blue sparks ran along her arm down to where his fist was still closed around her wrist. A blinding flash of blue and then he was torn away from her, sent flying across the room. Landing into the wall with such force that there was an Axel shaped dent in it.
Odette blinked, still frozen with her arm in the air. "What the bloody hell was that?" she whispered. A loud bang turned her attention to the side of the stage, where one of the doors tore open. Willow and Giles ran though, and they quickly started directing people outside.
Odette is broken from her shock as Xander, who was across the room was grabbed by a vampire from behind. "Xander!"
He shouts brought Buffy's head up and she flung a cymbal like a frisbee and sliced the offending vampire's head clean off.
"Heads up." Xander says, a little breathlessly. He got up to chase after Jesse and Odette almost went to follow him but spun as she heard her dad cry out. He was struggling under Darla and Odette raced over.
"Get off him you bitch." She stabbed at her, but the vampire merely dodged back, thankfully releasing her father in the process.
Darla snarled at her but was tapped on the shoulder. She spun and Willow threw a bottle of holy water straight into her face. She screamed, smoke billowing all around her as she fled out the door.
Odette grinned, "Nice one Wil," she turned and helped her dad off the floor.
"Yes, well, much appreciated."
As she turned she saw Jesse had Xander pinned against a pillar. She started forward but a fleeing woman bumped into Jesse from behind and he turned to dust. Xander was left holding a steak outward.
"Detty, look out!" her father called but Odette was lifted off her feet my the back of her neck.
"Don't struggle so much little bird." Axel purred. "And don't you try that trick again, sparky. Or I won't be as rosy as usually am."
"You forget. Metal can't hurt me."
Axel turned, giving Odette a view of Buffy standing before Luke a large metal pike held like a javelin thrower.
"There's something you forgot about too" the young slayer snarked, "Sunrise." She threw the pole, and it crashed through a window behind Luke, letting in a bright yellow light. Axel flinched back, dropping Odette who was quickly pulled back by her father. Luke writhed briefly before realizing that the light was just a yellow lamp on the side wall.
Unfortunately for him it gave Buffy plenty of time to sneak up behind him and stake him in the back. "It's in about nine hours moron."
Luke stumbled and fell to the floor, turning to dust. Buffy turned to look out at the crowd, most of the vampires dropped their prey and fled. Axel turned and looked at Odette over the shoulder of her father.
"This ain't over pet." He hissed, "You lot won this round, good onya." He turned his gaze to her father and snarled. "Best watch ya back mate. You can't keep me from her forever."
"Try me." Her father challenged; shoulder squared.
Axel growled but, casting one final look at Odette, followed his brethren out the door and into the night.
Buffy slides off the stage and her father lead Odette over, Willow and Xander following close behind.
"I take it it's over."
"Did we win?" Willow asked hesitantly.
Odette walked forward and knelt at the bouncer's side. Reaching forward she closed his eyes gently. "Not sure I'd call this completely a win." Glancing up at several of the bodies throughout the club. "We lost some." She whispered and Buffy walked over and squeezed her shoulder.
"Well, we averted the apocalypse. You gotta give us points for that."
Xander crossed his arms staring over to the pillar where he had staked Jesse. "One thing's for sure. Nothing is ever going to be the same."
Willow fidgeted before turning to everyone. "So…did…..did I imagine it or did Odette fling the creepy vampire across the room with blue sparks?"
Odette blinked and brought her hand up to eyelevel. She flinched as small blue veins, that almost looked like electricity danced across her palm.
"Dad?" she whispered, fear coloring her voice.
Her father crouched down, carefully taking her arm and examining her hand. After the sparks disappeared he clasp her hand in his and sighed.
"Well children, looks like we have some more research to do."