Chapter Fifteen

Honour and homecoming

"Huh? Was there anything to like before I discovered who the slayer is?"

"Not what I meant. I don't like it because he's not insane. He's got reasons to do what he does."

Shaking his head, Methos walked over to the fridge and pulled out a cold can of beer, casually tossing it to Joe.

"Thanks. And what reasons might he have to go around torturing and murdering people? Have you seen the descriptions of what he's done to the poor bastards he's caught? Seems to me he'd have to be crazy to do it."

"Not necessarily. I'm not saying he doesn't like what he does, but if he did it for pure pleasure, then he'd kill all Watchers he encountered in much the same way. No, he's got other reasons for it. And there are only so many possible reasons for torturing and killing people you don't know."

"And those are.?"

"Well, there is hate. He could hate the Watchers, maybe the Hunters killed someone close to him. It would fit the torture, but then again, he'd probably kill you all in the same way, and probably actively hunt Watchers as well."

Opening the can and taking a small sip, Joe nodded in agreement.

"He tortures Watchers following him, but arranges 'accidents' for those watching Immortals he's meeting. It might be that the torture is done as punishment for daring to follow him, but that extreme a reaction to something so trivial would indicate a rather uncontrollable temper, and that doesn't add up to someone Amanda would be friends with."

"I guess, but then why does he do it? It's not like we're a danger to him or anything."

"If not torturing for hate or pleasure, the most likely reason is for information, and given that he's managed to stay out of your Chronicles even better than I managed, I'd say that what he's after is information regarding how he was spotted, how long he's been followed and whatever else you've discovered about him. All kind of things that he can use to get away again. And that leads to why he's doing it."

Sighing, Methos slouched down on the sofa across from Joe and drank deeply of his own can before continuing.

"I think he's doing it because he's afraid, Joe."

Sputtering, Joe would have surged to his feet if not for the prostheses.

"You're saying he's killed dozens, maybe hundreds of Watchers, torturing lots of them, because he's AFRAID!? What the hell's he got to be afraid of? We're historians, we have oaths not to interfere, we stay out of your business! Hell, we didn't even interfere with Caspian, much as I regret that!"

"Does the name James Horton ring a bell, Joe?"

Joe winced, remembering the pain he'd felt as he pulled the trigger and killed his brother-in-law.

"He was an aberration, and you know it. And we cleaned up after it, got rid of all his sympathisers. "

"Oh? How about Jack Shapiro?"

"I tried to stop him, you know that! But Galanti'd killed his son, he was hunting us for what Horton'd done to his wife. There was no reasoning with either of them. But that is over now. We've learned, it won't happen again."

"Joe, the thing about Shapiro isn't that he killed Galanti. It's the ease by which he got so many other Watchers to help him. It was worse than with Horton. They were a minority of the Watchers, but all of a sudden you all seemed to forget the oath, and go hunting. With almost no evidence you guys tried to kill Mac for what Galanti'd done."

"People make mistakes, Methos. We're only human, but that doesn't excuse the slayer. He's been killing us for centuries! Way before Horton and Shapiro were even born!"

"And do you really believe that Horton was the first Watcher to ever kill one of us? For that matter, was I the first Immortal to ever infiltrate you? Or how about the Chronicles themselves? How many of those have you lost over the years?"

"What are you saying, that you agree with him? You think he's right, that we are a danger to you?"

"I don't agree with what he's doing, no, but yes, I think he's right. Why do you think I worked so hard to remain unwatched, or why I infiltrated the Methos project? It certainly wasn't because I enjoyed reading about the efforts you took to locate me."

Shocked, Joe sank back in the chair, clearly not believing what he was hearing.

"But it's not like that! We learned from those episodes. It's not going to happen again!"

"Joe, I believe you. You did learn from those 'episodes'. That is why I'm still here. I truly believe you'll make sure anything like that doesn't happen again, in your lifetime. But a hundred years from now? Or a thousand? I can guarantee you that some day a Watcher will behead an Immortal, and someone other than me will infiltrate you, or get their hands on a Chronicle. Or just become friendly with one of you, and get the information needed to take some easy heads."

"So because something might happen a thousand years from now, we should just let that bastard go on killing us, is that what you're saying?"

"Of course not! I might understand, even agree with why he's doing it, but he's taking it to extremes, and then there is the murdering of civilians as well. No, I agree that he's got to be stopped; I just don't like having to hunt down and kill someone for seeing a danger and acting on it. Even if it is overreacting."

"And don't forget the cheating at Challenges. That is after all the main reason Mac went after him."

"Ah, yes. The Challenges. The ones were he uses a gun, and takes the head when the one Challenging him is dead. Isn't that what you told Mac? The Immortal who Challenges him. He told Amanda the truth, Joe. He doesn't play the Game. Only instead of running he kills whoever threatens him, just like he does with the Watchers. No, I certainly don't like hunting this one."

Shaking himself slightly, as if to shrug off uncomfortable memories, Methos silently reminded himself that the mortal sitting across from him was his friend, and so were MacLeod and Amanda. He might not like it, but for their sake he would take the head of 'the slayer'.

"Ok, first things first. I don't think Mac and Amanda are in any immediate danger from the sl..this is ridiculous! What does this friend of Amanda call himself?"

"His current identity is 'Michael Sedgewick', but Amanda seems to believe his original name is Samuel McDowell. Or at least that is the name of the young Immortal he pretends to be, anyway. And is it truly that easy to pretend to be a new Immortal?"

"Well, yes and no. I could probably tell if he's way older than he pretends, but Amanda'd be too young to have developed that ability. Anyway, as I was saying, I doubt they are in any immediate danger, as long as 'Samuel' believes that he can mislead them, so I think the best approach may be to not tell them about this, let Samuel send them on their way while we move up from behind."

"You can't be serious. This guy is slaughtering people because they MIGHT be a danger, and you think Mac and Amanda'd be safe from him? Need I remind you that they are hunting him with intent of cutting his head off?"

"I know that, but as far as they know, he's not their target. He's a friend of Amanda who's helping them find the Immortal they are hunting. As long as they go on believing that, they're safe from him."

"And what about their Watchers? You think he'll be willing to let them live, as well?"

"Ah, probably not. If we don't expose him, we have to call them, get them out of town before Mac and Amanda meet him."

"Assuming we do that, why should we let them go on believing that he's a friend? Why not just call Mac and tell him who he's really after? Then he can take his head and this is all over."

"Because if I'm right, then telling Mac would be the same as signing his death warrant. The first thing he'd do would be to confront Samuel, possibly taking care to prevent him from using his guns, and issue a Challenge. And Samuel would refuse to accept it. And there is just no way Mac would take the head of an Immortal who's not even carrying a sword, he's way to honourable for that. He'd let him walk away first. But Samuel would undoubtedly then consider Mac a potential danger, and he'd remove it at first opportunity, possibly along with Amanda."

Joe paled as he considered the scenario Methos was painting. Try as he might, he couldn't help but agree. The Highlander would never strike down an unarmed man, and if Samuel truly refused to lift or even carry a sword, he was perfectly safe. At least from Duncan MacLeod. But the Immortal who'd once been Death? He didn't think Methos would hesitate a second before cutting the bastards head off.

"Good point. So he sends them on a wild-goose chase, while we do what?"

"You get the Watchers to dig into 'Michael Sedgewick'. I need to know all there is about him, particularly how he creates his identities. What kind of resources he's got access to would also be nice to know. Just make sure they stay away from him, and try no to alert him in any way. Meanwhile, I'm going to L.A. to join Mac and Amanda in the hunt, and maybe get to meet 'Samuel'."

The last was said with a smile cold enough to freeze the beer he was still holding, and Joe relaxed as the ancient Immortal prepared to deal with the monster.

****

Walking behind the man Michael had sent to bring him to their meeting, Duncan was beginning to wonder just what was going on. This entire situation just didn't feel right. He could vaguely accept that Michael preferred meeting in public rather than on holy ground, but then why had he sent this man to fetch him away from the agreed upon location?

His unease had first been roused when the man he'd tentatively identified as his current Watcher had left the bar almost at a run, ashen-faced after a short conversation over his cell phone, and then this man had walked into the bar shortly after.

Now, Duncan knew enough about people not to judge on first impression alone, but he was fully prepared to say that the man he was following had not been hired for his people skills, or his ability to blend into the crowd. Weighing in at close to 300 pounds of massive muscle, and almost six and a half feet tall, all decked out in black leather and with a scowl seemingly etched permanently onto his face, he seemed to have stepped right out of the Hells Angels bodybuilding club. In a hotel mainly frequented by mid level businessmen, he stood out like a wolf in a flock of sheep.

Entering the elevator behind him, Duncan was hardly surprised to find that no one else seemed interested in sharing it with them.

****

Before they returned to Earth and the monster that'd spawned him, his father had told him all that he knew about Angelus, and that had included the Hellmouth in Sunnydale. It was the place where Angelus had been unable to maintain his charade, had revealed himself as the monster he truly were. And now he'd returned there, along with two of the fools who claimed him as a friend. And Connor would be there to slay him if an opportunity presented itself. If it didn't, he just might take the chance anyway.

Remembering what Holz had told him about the Hellmouth, Connor knew the place was filled with all sorts of demons and ghouls, vampires among the least of them. He knew the power of the Hellmouth attracted them like flies to a rotting corpse, whispering sweet promises of death and destruction as it filled them with power, made them stronger than anywhere else on earth. What he hadn't expected was feeling it himself.

Slouching in his seat at the back of the bus as it approached Sunnydale, Connor abruptly sat up as he felt the air around him changing, almost visibly turning darker, tainted with the power he could feel emanating from up ahead. He could feel it reaching for him, surrounding him, filling him. It felt like coming home.

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