***Chapter Seven***
**Light of Damage**
The room filled with such an immense light, that it was blinding for both of them, the warmth and energy that the entity was pouring out, diffusing itself through every cell of their bodies, dead or otherwise. It sizzled along every nerve ending, sending intense tingling sensations down every ganglion, making each cell fire onto the next, stronger with each pulse, until causing an immense feeling of heat along their bodies. It wasn't painful, but it certainly portrayed the capability of the entity, that now inhabited the cavern. It was over in a matter of seconds, but it took longer for the Slayer and vampire to recover, the light had effect their eyesight, temporarily blinding them, with its intensity.
Buffy's sight had become hazy, as if looking through opaque glass. She could see shadows, some depth perception, but nothing too clearly. It was if her iris had been fully opened, and she couldn't focus on what was in front of her. Despite this incapacity, she could make out that the light entity was shifting, changing, and dimming in intensity. For want of a better description, taking on corporeal shape, even if for her, it was a long elongated blob of something, it was shifting its shape and becoming something. 'It' moved out of her sight and deeper into the cavern, moving around to one of the crevasses, hiding out of sight.
Her vision slowly returned to normal, as she was made aware that the light balls had dimmed, to the extent that they let out only a small amount of light. She could barely make out Spike, who stood next to her, still only clad in the sheet, he now had on his game face. He was looking directly in front of them, his gold eyes focused and glaring, his head cocked to the side, as if trying to make sense of what he saw. Buffy could only assume, that due to the low visibility of the room, his vamp sight allowed him to see more than her.
"What's going on?" Buffy sought out Spike, grabbing hold of his arm, trying to find an anchor in this madness. "What do you see?"
"A woman I think?" Spike shook his head, "I'm not exactly sure? I think it was a woman?"
"Did she have the bad hair, teeth, and look 'Slayerish' at all?"
"Nope. No 'Slayer' warning bells going off here." Spike continued to scan the cavern, trying to get another glimpse of the woman/entity, "Come out. Come out, wherever you are!"
"Spike!!" Buffy slapped him on the arm, "Don't play games!"
"Hey! Innocent party here!"
"Then be a good vamp and behave!"
Around them a slight breeze whirled, from the depth of the cavern a single shadow appeared, humanoid in shape, moving directly into their path. They didn't have long to wait for the visitor to make herself known. Before them came what indeed looked like a human female, approximately 5' 9", slim in build, flowing brown straight hair, with eyes of brown encased with a blazing rings of gold. Dressed in a red robe that flowed out in the breeze, it was almost medieval in appearance, gathered at the waist and belling out in the skirt, a corset type top, with long triangular draping sleeves.
"Your lady speaks fine words Vampire!" The words of the woman before them echoed off the cavern walls, blasting a wind through the two that stood before her. They carried the weight of her power within them. "You must learn some patience it would seem."
"Hey look here, whatever you are...." Spike took a step forward, but was stopped by Buffy's arm reaching out and halting his progress. He turned looking at her, seeing the caution written all over her face, he stopped and stood back.
"Okay pleasantries over. Who are you and what do you want?" Buffy asked the woman before them, she was not in the mood for games, she'd had enough of them already with the First Slayer.
"So Slayer, it would appear that patience is something you humans still have yet to learn? Have your kind changed at all?"
"Our kind?" Buffy was slightly confused at the females' line of questioning.
"Human." Spike whispered to her.
"Well I didn't think she was talking about fashion Spike!" Buffy took a few steps forward, looking over the form before her, trying to sum up what stood before her. "Well, do I have to put it in some other words for you? Who are you? What do you want?"
"What do I want?.....................All in good time Slayer. All in good time." the female moved closer, "I am what was, and will be what is."
"Do you come with a thesaurus? Because you're not making much sense, but then again do any of you like making sense?" Buffy asked.
"No luv, they just love keeping us in the dark." Spike moved behind Buffy, guarding her with a wary eye.
"Why with all the riddles? Can't you just spell it out? Plain and simple?" Buffy was getting rather irate.
"Patience!!" the female spoke towards the girl.
"I don't have any!! I just want some answers!" Buffy was on the brink of exploding, and consequences be damned.
"Granted this is a delicate time, I will forgive your behaviour." The woman moved towards the tables and chairs, "Sit and I will tell you what I can. For now at least."
Buffy stood where she was, refusing to budge an inch, she was sick of the games, sick of them playing with her mind. Spike felt her hesitancy, he gingerly gestured with a hand behind her back, to move to the table, "Go on luv" was whispered in such silence that she barely heard it. With some reluctance she moved to one of the chairs and sat, as Spike moved to the bedroom to retrieve some clothes.
The female moved to the opposite side of the table and sat, looking around at the environment that surrounded her. With a hand she picked up and arranged some of the glasses that had fallen over with her arrival, putting them into a neat line. The rings of her eyes blazed in intensity, as they finally rested on Buffy and Spike as he sat down, her gaze was that of a hunter seeking its quarry. It was something similar to what she'd seen inn many a vampire's eye as they sought out their 'Happy Meals on legs', as Spike had once so eloquently put it.
"Who are you?" Buffy finally asked of the woman at the table.
"I am what was, and what will be."
"Not good enough!" Buffy shifted in her chair, "Lets start again. Do you have a name at least?"
"Yes I have a name, but to your kind it is not known, it is unspoken, and silent."
"Not making much sense lady!!" Spike entered the conversation.
"Very well!" The being knocked over a glass with her finger, her irritation obvious to all, "I have been amongst your kind before, I was named 'Gemma', by a child I sought once."
"So we have a name. What about the rest of it?" Buffy asked her.
"The rest?"
"The little line about 'I am what was, and what will be'? Nice little number, but what's that supposed to mean?" Buffy continued.
"I am the beginning now, and I will be the last! I am one, but now I have many." Buffy's voice resinated out of the woman's mouth, each syllable and sound wave identical to her own voice, copied in exact pitch and form, "They mean the same, they are intertwined, they are what we are and what we will be." Gemma's voice speech returned.
"Bloody hell woman! No more fucking riddles!" Spike was lost in the middle of it all.
"I don't get it." Buffy couldn't believe what was happening, it was like being used as a pawn in a game she didn't understand.
"You will Slayer, you will. Our paths are connected and crossed, we are one but we are many. It will be come clearer as time passes, and you find your destiny."
"What path? What bloody destiny? She fulfilled her destiny, she killed the First and stopped all the apocalypses you could put in front of her. What more do you bloody want from her?" Spike piped up, he'd seen Buffy fight her war for seven long hard years, and it wasn't over. Would it ever be over, he wanted more than anything for her, for them, to have some life, if you could call it that.
"To take her rightful place" Gemma looked directly at Buffy.
"As the First Slayer."
**Light of Damage**
The room filled with such an immense light, that it was blinding for both of them, the warmth and energy that the entity was pouring out, diffusing itself through every cell of their bodies, dead or otherwise. It sizzled along every nerve ending, sending intense tingling sensations down every ganglion, making each cell fire onto the next, stronger with each pulse, until causing an immense feeling of heat along their bodies. It wasn't painful, but it certainly portrayed the capability of the entity, that now inhabited the cavern. It was over in a matter of seconds, but it took longer for the Slayer and vampire to recover, the light had effect their eyesight, temporarily blinding them, with its intensity.
Buffy's sight had become hazy, as if looking through opaque glass. She could see shadows, some depth perception, but nothing too clearly. It was if her iris had been fully opened, and she couldn't focus on what was in front of her. Despite this incapacity, she could make out that the light entity was shifting, changing, and dimming in intensity. For want of a better description, taking on corporeal shape, even if for her, it was a long elongated blob of something, it was shifting its shape and becoming something. 'It' moved out of her sight and deeper into the cavern, moving around to one of the crevasses, hiding out of sight.
Her vision slowly returned to normal, as she was made aware that the light balls had dimmed, to the extent that they let out only a small amount of light. She could barely make out Spike, who stood next to her, still only clad in the sheet, he now had on his game face. He was looking directly in front of them, his gold eyes focused and glaring, his head cocked to the side, as if trying to make sense of what he saw. Buffy could only assume, that due to the low visibility of the room, his vamp sight allowed him to see more than her.
"What's going on?" Buffy sought out Spike, grabbing hold of his arm, trying to find an anchor in this madness. "What do you see?"
"A woman I think?" Spike shook his head, "I'm not exactly sure? I think it was a woman?"
"Did she have the bad hair, teeth, and look 'Slayerish' at all?"
"Nope. No 'Slayer' warning bells going off here." Spike continued to scan the cavern, trying to get another glimpse of the woman/entity, "Come out. Come out, wherever you are!"
"Spike!!" Buffy slapped him on the arm, "Don't play games!"
"Hey! Innocent party here!"
"Then be a good vamp and behave!"
Around them a slight breeze whirled, from the depth of the cavern a single shadow appeared, humanoid in shape, moving directly into their path. They didn't have long to wait for the visitor to make herself known. Before them came what indeed looked like a human female, approximately 5' 9", slim in build, flowing brown straight hair, with eyes of brown encased with a blazing rings of gold. Dressed in a red robe that flowed out in the breeze, it was almost medieval in appearance, gathered at the waist and belling out in the skirt, a corset type top, with long triangular draping sleeves.
"Your lady speaks fine words Vampire!" The words of the woman before them echoed off the cavern walls, blasting a wind through the two that stood before her. They carried the weight of her power within them. "You must learn some patience it would seem."
"Hey look here, whatever you are...." Spike took a step forward, but was stopped by Buffy's arm reaching out and halting his progress. He turned looking at her, seeing the caution written all over her face, he stopped and stood back.
"Okay pleasantries over. Who are you and what do you want?" Buffy asked the woman before them, she was not in the mood for games, she'd had enough of them already with the First Slayer.
"So Slayer, it would appear that patience is something you humans still have yet to learn? Have your kind changed at all?"
"Our kind?" Buffy was slightly confused at the females' line of questioning.
"Human." Spike whispered to her.
"Well I didn't think she was talking about fashion Spike!" Buffy took a few steps forward, looking over the form before her, trying to sum up what stood before her. "Well, do I have to put it in some other words for you? Who are you? What do you want?"
"What do I want?.....................All in good time Slayer. All in good time." the female moved closer, "I am what was, and will be what is."
"Do you come with a thesaurus? Because you're not making much sense, but then again do any of you like making sense?" Buffy asked.
"No luv, they just love keeping us in the dark." Spike moved behind Buffy, guarding her with a wary eye.
"Why with all the riddles? Can't you just spell it out? Plain and simple?" Buffy was getting rather irate.
"Patience!!" the female spoke towards the girl.
"I don't have any!! I just want some answers!" Buffy was on the brink of exploding, and consequences be damned.
"Granted this is a delicate time, I will forgive your behaviour." The woman moved towards the tables and chairs, "Sit and I will tell you what I can. For now at least."
Buffy stood where she was, refusing to budge an inch, she was sick of the games, sick of them playing with her mind. Spike felt her hesitancy, he gingerly gestured with a hand behind her back, to move to the table, "Go on luv" was whispered in such silence that she barely heard it. With some reluctance she moved to one of the chairs and sat, as Spike moved to the bedroom to retrieve some clothes.
The female moved to the opposite side of the table and sat, looking around at the environment that surrounded her. With a hand she picked up and arranged some of the glasses that had fallen over with her arrival, putting them into a neat line. The rings of her eyes blazed in intensity, as they finally rested on Buffy and Spike as he sat down, her gaze was that of a hunter seeking its quarry. It was something similar to what she'd seen inn many a vampire's eye as they sought out their 'Happy Meals on legs', as Spike had once so eloquently put it.
"Who are you?" Buffy finally asked of the woman at the table.
"I am what was, and what will be."
"Not good enough!" Buffy shifted in her chair, "Lets start again. Do you have a name at least?"
"Yes I have a name, but to your kind it is not known, it is unspoken, and silent."
"Not making much sense lady!!" Spike entered the conversation.
"Very well!" The being knocked over a glass with her finger, her irritation obvious to all, "I have been amongst your kind before, I was named 'Gemma', by a child I sought once."
"So we have a name. What about the rest of it?" Buffy asked her.
"The rest?"
"The little line about 'I am what was, and what will be'? Nice little number, but what's that supposed to mean?" Buffy continued.
"I am the beginning now, and I will be the last! I am one, but now I have many." Buffy's voice resinated out of the woman's mouth, each syllable and sound wave identical to her own voice, copied in exact pitch and form, "They mean the same, they are intertwined, they are what we are and what we will be." Gemma's voice speech returned.
"Bloody hell woman! No more fucking riddles!" Spike was lost in the middle of it all.
"I don't get it." Buffy couldn't believe what was happening, it was like being used as a pawn in a game she didn't understand.
"You will Slayer, you will. Our paths are connected and crossed, we are one but we are many. It will be come clearer as time passes, and you find your destiny."
"What path? What bloody destiny? She fulfilled her destiny, she killed the First and stopped all the apocalypses you could put in front of her. What more do you bloody want from her?" Spike piped up, he'd seen Buffy fight her war for seven long hard years, and it wasn't over. Would it ever be over, he wanted more than anything for her, for them, to have some life, if you could call it that.
"To take her rightful place" Gemma looked directly at Buffy.
"As the First Slayer."