Chapter 27c

                The room they next walked into reminded them of a scene that could be easily found in an old horror movie.

            The room was smaller and a bit gloomier than the previous one.  Torches lined the walls in intervals, spreading down the wall towards the next chamber.

            Thick, luxurious, blood red plush curtains covered the entire wall, on both sides.  There was no telling what, if anything, was behind them... they were draped from ceiling to floor.

            At the far end of the room, there was another doorway; these doors weren't closed however.  They were cracked open in the middle. 

            An eerie-looking green light was emanating from some source, beyond the doors, beyond their perception.

            The crew moved silently into the room, not sure about what they might find, even though most of them were up to just about anything, because they were still psyched up from the last battle.

            "I wonder what goodies this room holds," Xander muttered in a loud whisper, as they advanced further into the room."

            No sooner than he had spoken, than the doors they had just entered through, slammed shut behind them, a steel, impenetrable gate crashing down in front of the doors, barring any exit they may have attempted to make.

            Everyone threw Xander a look.

            "I know...I shouldn't have said that…I am an idiot...I wear the hat of shame."

            They all shook their heads, wasn't worth it to get mad at Xander, he was just being himself.

            Besides, who really knew what had set the doors and the gate off, it could have been anything. 

            Xander, Gunn and Giles all walked towards the steel gate that now barred their only known escape route, their intent was to study it and see how secure it was. 

            Angel and Spike stopped them before they could get within five feet of the gate.

            "What's up guy's?"

            "Don't touch that bloody thing."

            "Why not Spike?  Are spikes or other impale-y type things gonna come out of it?  Cause that's…well that's not in the range of the good."

            "Got that right."

            "It's not that…well, not just that.  There's something not right about it Willow."

            "Angel, what could not be right about a gate?"

            "It smells off Red…poisonous."

            "Oh."

            "You can smell poison?"

            "Well, yeah."

            "Kinda like a special bloodhound, ain't ya 'Fang Boy'?"

            "You're pushing it, 'Whelp'"

            "I'm shaking in my boots."

            "Boys…" Giles started to say, only to be interrupted by Spike's

            "I thought we already covered this, Pops.  Are you starting to suffer senility?  I'm your senior, so you bloody well don't get to tell me what to do."

            "Boys!!" Angel roared.  "We don't have time for this.  Human side of our team, stay away from that gate, the poison came from what I think is a Sventi demon.  At least, that's what it smells like.  They're blood, or essence, which is smeared on that gate, disintegrates the molecular composition of humans…the makings of human jellyfish, Xander.  It'll kill you in minutes.  Vampires and most other demons, however, it'll turn insane."

            "It's not their blood, 'Poppa Poof'…their blood is poisonous and toxic, yes & it is on that gate…I smell it too, but it's only mixed in with something else.  If I remember correctly, Sventi demons spray some sort of toxin at you, like snakes do.  That's probably what it is."

            "That's what I meant by 'essence', Spike."

            Spike rolled his eyes.

            "Poncy Bugger."

            "Okay…I for one, especially after hearing all that, am for not getting anywhere near the gate, or the Sventi demon."

            "I'm with you on that one Gunn…anyone else up for not touching S-demon's essence, blood or spray stuff, raise their hands."

            All hands raised.

            "Alright…it's unanimous.  Please tell me we don't have to battle one of those…and if so, how do we battle one of those?"

            "You hide in the corner, 'Spider Eating Boy', oh yes, I heard all about it from Harmony.  We, Angel and I, fight it."

            Xander glared at him.

            "Couldn't think of a comeback?"

            "I have one, I'm not gonna use it…but I have one, you know."

            "Sure you do."

            Willow, Tara, and Gunn looked away, trying not to laugh.

            Giles looked exasperated, he was pinching the bridge of his nose again.

            Angel looked like he was about to start ripping heads, starting with Spike's.

            "Spike…you're not helping.  If we don't make it through whatever this trap is and don't get to dust Darla, we're not going to be able to bring Buffy back, now are we?"

            Spike looked somewhat contrite.

            He looked like he was about to start apologizing, which Xander was almost looking forward to seeing, when all heard a faint whooshing sound.

            Everyone started looking everywhere at once.

            "What was that?  Haven't we been through enough already?"

            "Scared 'Whelp'?"

            "Scared…why should I be scared?  I have Deadboy Senior and Deadboy Junior, also known as Captain Peroxide on my side."

            Gunn turned to Willow, "Do they ever stop?"

            "No.  It's best tune them out, occasionally tuning in, cause sometimes, they're just too funny."

            "I noticed that, " Gunn said, smirking.

"I don't hear it anymore.  Angel, can you still hear it?"

            "Yeah, but it's getting softer.  I don't like this."

            "Hey Watcher?" Spike said, abruptly breaking off in the middle of fighting with Xander.

            "Yes Spike?"
            "How do you kill a Sventi demon?"
            "Umm...I don't know...why?"

            "Cause I'd say we're about to have it's company in a few seconds.  Red, Glenda…another of your beautiful barriers would come in handy right about now."

            "That's all we're good for, isn't it," Willow said, pretending to be sarcastic, as she and Tara waved up a barrier to encompass them all.

"You know it Witch," Spike replied, winking at her.

"Now what?" Xander asked.

"Now we wait…"

"Mr. Giles?"

"Yes Tara?"

"Do you think Mr. Wesley would know how to kill a Sventi demon?"

"Tara you're a genius," Giles said pulling out his cell and praying that the connection would be good.

They were in luck and within seconds Cordelia answered.

"You've reached Angel Investigations, we help the helpless.  How can I…"

"Cordelia…its Giles.  You are all okay, I hope?"

"We're fine. You're all okay?  You're all alive right?  Is Darla dead yet or is she dusted yet?  Are you on you're way back yet?  Cause we're all going …"

"Cordelia…we're all fine and so far, all alive, but time is of the essence.  We need some information now.  Is Wesley close by?"

"Yeah, he's here…hold on."

Giles could hear Cordy call for Wesley and hand the phone to him.

"Giles, how can I help you?" 

"Sventi demon…we need to know how to kill it!"

"How soon do you need it?"

"Five minutes ago would have been best.  Now…would be good.  But we have some time…a few minutes, 10, maybe 20 at the most.  We have a barrier surrounding us, but we're slightly tired…we've been through at least three battles already."

"Understood…we'll work quickly."

"Thanks."

"Okay…I'll just hang…"

"No…don't hang up Mr. Wesley, " Tara shouted, for she had been closest to Giles during their conversation.  "We don't know if we can get through again, Mr. Giles."

"Right…I'll hold on.  Wes…you still there?"
            "I am…we're looking.  Hold on."

"We will."

Angel & Spike were following the sound of the Sventi demon with their ears, heads cocked and bodies still, but their eyes were wide open, faces vamped and looking around.

"There are more than two Dad."

"So I hear."

"What's a Sventi demon look like anyway?" Gunn asked, coming to stand behind the two vampires.

Seconds later, a huge Snake-like demon with enormous wings, sharp fangs, and two hands with five talon-like claws, ran full tilt into their barrier.

Angel and Spike jumped...for they hadn't seen it until it hit the barrier.

Gunn and Giles jumped and shouted, holding their chests.

Giles, though, thankfully had carefully held onto the phone, neither dropping nor severing the connection.

            Xander, Willow and Tara had all jumped and screamed.  Xander's shriek definitely higher than the girls.

            Spike looked at Gunn.

            "Sventi demon...looks like that."

            Gunn felt his heartbeat begin the descent to a normal pace.  When he could breath again, he took a deep breath and then said,

            "Got the word-picture Spike.  Thanks."

            Spike winked.  "Here to help."

            Gunn snorted.

            Spike then turned and looked at Xander.  A large grin was on his face.

            Xander cut him off.

            "Not. One. Word."

            "I..."

            "I said, 'Not. One. Word,' evil blood sucking fiend."

            Spike chuckled.

            Now if he had been good...he'd have left it at that.

            But, one, they had some time to kill.  And two, When has Spike ever been good for Xander?

            Spike moved away from Xander and looked at Gunn.

            "Hey Chuck?"

            "Call me Gunn, William."

            "Alright, alright...This puppy'll play nice.  No need to get defensive.  Look...I'll start all over again.  Hey Gunn?"

            Gunn smirked, "Yes Spike?"
                        "Did you hear?"

            "Hear what?"

            "The 'Whelp' over there, shrieking like a girl?"

            Gunn laughed.

            "I mean...he was louder than the girls.  Had a higher pitch too.  Makes you wonder just a bit about him, too, don't ya think?"

            "Shut up Spike."

            Spike ignored him and continued talking to Gunn.

            "You know, he once tried to get me to bite him, even when I told him he wasn't my type.  He told me that he was 'Moist and Delicious'.  Which also makes me wonder, how would he know?  Does he go around trying to suck and bite himself?  You think, maybe, he's jealous of me?"

            Gunn was laughing so hard tears were coming down his face.  The effort of trying to keep from laughing out loud was so great; his whole body shook with the effort.

            "Shut up Spike!"

                        Spike continued to ignore him. 

                        'Hell', he thought, 'this was so much more fun than he had originally thought it would be.'

                        Spike continued talking to Gunn, as if there hadn't been an interruption.

                        And by this time, Willow and Tara had joined Gunn, laughing silently.

            "And he wasn't satisfied until I told him he was a 'Nummy Treat'.  Now, whatever your preference, is alright with me.  Vamps tend to like sex…and for some, it's wherever and whatever they can get, they get.  But even they are way more secure with themselves.  Did he really need my validation?  You tell me?  You know what I think?  I think…that secretly…he wants me.  I mean…I know I'm cute; hell…I'm a hottie.  I know this.  But…I just don't swing that way; you know what I'm saying?"

                        Gunn was close to collapsing.  He was laughing so hard, that Spike kinda had to hold him up.  Willow and Tara were right there with him too, except they had each other to help hold them up.

                        "Now…here's where I think I'm gonna have to need your advice.  Can you help me, do you think?"

                        "W…what do you need advice with?" Gunn choked out.

                        "How do you think…I should let him down?  I mean, I still want to be…kinda friends with him and all…just don't want to worry about bending over in his presence, you know?  But…more importantly, I need to know how to make the physical rejection not the mental kind.  I've been rejected before…and it hurts.  I don't want him to suffer too much."

                        The look on Spike face, the sincerity of his statement, combined with the devilish light in the back of his eyes did all three: Willow, Tara, and Gunn in.  They sunk to the floor, laughing hard, clutching each other for support.

                        "Damn it Spike.  Shut the hell up."        

            "Excuse me, Harris.  I'm not talking to you.  My buddy Gunn and I were having a private conversation here."

            "But you're talking about me."

            "Did I say your name?"

            "I know it's me you're talking about, Spike and I so do not want you."

            "But did I say your name?"

            "No."

            "Then leave the conversation where it lies."

            "And where is that."

            Spike gave Gunn a grin. "Between A and B," Spike said pointing at himself and Gunn respectively.  "Do I really need to tell you to 'C' your way out?"

            Xander glared at Spike.

            Gunn, Willow and Tara laughed.

            Spike smiled and then bowed towards the girls and Gunn.  He then turned to look at Xander and gave him a wink.

            Giles barely noticed what was going on, he was alternating between giving Wesley details of the Sventi demon and watching the Sventi demon travel around their barrier looking for a way in.

            Angel, as well, didn't pay them that much attention.  He knew that while Spike was having fun, he was also keeping the gang from freaking out, by helping them release the tension…well, that and being a total lunatic.  Angel, though, had his eyes focused on the visual demon, and his ears looking out for the rest of them.  Only snips and pieces of Spike's conversation with both Gunn and Xander reached him, which he smirked when he heard a good part.

            A second Sventi demon became visible at this time and it joined the first one, who was circling their barrier.  Both demons were now looking for a way in.

            "Okay Wesley.  I got it.  Thank you for the information."

            "Your welcome Rupert, bring everyone home safe."

            "I'll do my best.  Goodbye…Wes.  Look after the girls for us."

            "Will do.  Goodbye…Giles.  And Good Luck!"

            Giles hung up and told them,

            "Okay…Wesley and Fred looked up the Sventi demon.  It had only three known weaknesses.  First, it is weak in water, so weak, it would hardly be able to fight back.  And its defensive shields go into sort of a hibernation then…makes it an easy target."

"I don't know about you, 'Watcher', but I don't see any great bodies of water laying around, do you?"

"No…"

"Then how about you tell us the next part."

"If you would only be patient, I'll get to the next part."

"Sorry, I'm anxious."

"I understand."

"Hold on…did he just apologize?"
            "Yeah, so what of it 'Whelp'?"

"You never apologize to me."

"And your point is?"
            "Well why not?"

"I don't know…maybe because I 'LIKE' annoying and insulting you.  And guess what? I'm usually not sorry when I do it."

"That's just not right."

"Wow…the evil vampire is shocked," Spike said mockingly.

"I'm serious."

Spike rolled his eyes.
            "And Giles…how come he can treat you like that and then you forgive him."

"Xander, could we not do this later.  We are in a life and death situation you know."

"Yeah…like we haven't ever been in one of those kinds of situations before, except for wait…we're always in that situation," Xander said sarcastically.  "Hello, we live on a hellmouth…walking out your door at night is a life and death situation. You're giving him special treatment…again."

"Xander…"

"And how come you never give him that kind of tone…well, sometimes you do, but I get it way more than he ever does.  And he's way more annoying than I am…than I can be, I mean."

Xander gave Spike a look.  "Watcher's other pet."

Spike raised his eyebrow, "And who's the first one?"

"Buffy.  'Watcher's pet'…get it?"
            Spike laughed.

"Yeah…not bad.  Doesn't beat my left one though?"

"Which left one?"

"Well, while Dad and I were battling the 'Twaggy' demon I said…"

"Spike, Xander…"

Both looked over at Giles.

"I was explaining…"

"Oh…right.  Go on then…"

"Sorry…I'll get that story later Spike."

Giles rubbed his glasses again.  Thinking repeatedly, 'Why me?  What did I do to deserve this and those two boys.  I couldn't have been that bad as a youngster.  Create a few demons, learn the black arts…wasn't I redeemed when I decided to fight on the side of the good and became a Watcher.  And as much as I love her, Buffy wasn't the easiest charge in the world.  Is this some sort of warped torture by the Powers That Be?'

Giles came out his reverie to find them all staring at him.

"Why are you all staring at me for?"

"We were waiting for you to continue."

"Oh…right.  Okay," Giles jumped right back into what Wes had told him, before they got sidetracked again.

"Their second weakness is the skin between and under their steel-bone-like ribcage.  It's not going to be easy.  They'll protect it like they were protecting treasure.  But if you can reach it, without the demon slicing you to death or sinking its fangs into you, it's a great spot.  Now their third and final weakness, that's listed, is where its wings meet the snake-like part of its body.  That's its Achilles Heel, so to speak.  One perfectly placed blow will kill it in one strike.  And that's all they could find."

            "Well, good information, now, how to distract it, so we can kill it."

            "Wait, first we all need to know why it's such a dangerous creature."

            "I'm thinking big sharp fangs, poison bite, steel grip, with shredding digits and not to mention the fact that it could swallow us whole, spring to mind as to how dangerous it is Giles."

            "Those are just some of its factors, Xander.  It's also very intelligent.  Have you not noticed that only one attacked the barrier?  The rest seem to be communicating and looking for weaknesses."

            "You mean it's like the Raptor on Jurassic Park.  Oh this so sucks."

            "Naw Xand, that's me and 'Peaches' and personally, I'm full."

            "Shut up Spike."

            Spike chuckled.

            "How many of them are out there anyway, guys?"

            "Four," both vampires replied at once.

            "Oh dear lord."

            "Yeah…right there with you on that one G-man."

            Giles thought about rubbing his glasses, but changed his mind. 

Angel turned to look at Willow and Tara. 

"I have an idea on how we can kill them quick."

"One of the Great Poof's plans…well don't keep us in suspense, 'O Souled Wonder. How?"

"Can you two make a storm?  If we can get them nice and soaked, according to Wesley, they'll be easier for us to kill."

"We can try, but I don't know how much more magic we can pull…we need to rest."

            "Just do what you can, girls."

Willow and Tara joined hands, both whispering a few phrases of some ancient text,

                        " Ashinan mulanion…

aquiston ti mae sot la…

I ten chi ta kei…

Wa misho so la one."

            A dark cloud began to form above the room.

            The cloud began to churn, thunderstorms and lightening, mixed in.

            Then raindrops began to fall.

             The Sventi demons first looked confused.

            And then horrified as they looked inside the barrier and looked toward the witches, seeing their joined hands and dark eyes.

            Then the demons began to scatter, looking for anything that could cover them, trying to get out of the rain.

            There was no escape.

            The raindrops became more and more until it was coming down in showers.

            Some of the demons howled as their wings became listless and useless.

            The two that had been flying closer to the ceiling had fallen to the ground; they were slithering and pulling themselves around on their claws.

            The other two were slithering and squealing, trying to get under the curtain.

            Spike and Angel looked at each other and smiled.

            Gunn pulled off his weapons backpack and gave each vampire a crossbow and a sword.

            "I want my weapons back, so be careful with them, you two."

            "Yes Gun, " they both said, voices sounding like children who were ready to go out and play.

            "Now don't forget…don't die," Xander said to both of them.

            "If I didn't know better, 'Harris', I'd think you cared."

            "Well, I don't.  But I'm sure Buffy'll kick your shiny, white bum for treating me so mean when she gets back…and if you die now, I won't get to watch."

            Spike just laughed.

            "Okay Wicca's…do your stuff."

            The girls laughed and teleported them outside of their barrier.

            Their vamps wasted no time; they quickly ran over to the demons and struck them in their vulnerable spots.

            One demon tried to fight back, but it was so waterlogged that it could only use its tail to swat at them.  They laughed and struck it dead.

            When all the Sventi demons were dead,

            Spike looked at Angel and said,

            "Well that was barely any fun at all."

            "Didn't the 'Twaggy' demon give you enough of a workout?"

            "Well, yeah, but I wanted some more.  This was hardly anything…I get more pleasure in teasing Xander than this."

            Angel chuckled.

            "Well, whatever may be through those doors might give you some fun."

            "There's always hope," Spike said.

            Angel just laughed.

            The rest of the crew joined them and they walked into the next chamber, towards the eerie glow.

TBC...

(don't stress…we're almost there…and if I had continued it…You'd still be waiting.  We couldn't have than, now could we?  :-D  More coming soon…reviews make it come quicker though…hint, hint.)