NINE
"You vanquished it before," said Chris. "And you weren't even aware that it was coming. Now that you've been forewarned, you won't have to worry about it. As I recall, Piper simply blew it up when it became corporeal. Just don't leave baby Wyatt alone and when the Collector shows up you vanquish it like you did before."
"Sounds like a plan to me," said Buffy.
"Except that it doesn't explain what the Elders sensed," said Leo. "If this Collector isn't that powerful, it couldn't be the evil they told me about. They said it was one of the most powerful things they've sensed in a long time."
"Here now," said Spike, "you said it appeared about the same time that I got my body back?"
"I appears so," said Leo. "Why do you ask?"
"Nothing really," said Spike. "Only while I was a ghost I had this nagging feeling that I wasn't alone. That someone - or something - else was with me."
"You never mentioned that before," said Angel.
"I was never a ghost before," said Spike. "The whole thing was a bit new to me. I just figured that's how it felt to be dead for real. When I got my body back, I didn't feel it any more."
"Do you think something might have hitched a ride with Spike?" Buffy asked.
"I don't know," said Leo. "I've never heard of anything that could do that."
"There's something else," said Spike. "When that Wyatt fella' appeared in Angels' office. He said the queerest thing. Had me thinking some bloody crazy thoughts for a moment."
"What was it, Spike?" Paige asked.
"He said it wasn't about good or evil," said Spike. "It was about power."
"Wyatt use to say that all the time," said Chris. "He said I'd never understand as long as I thought in concepts of good versus evil. He said there really wasn't any difference between the two. That it was about power not some man made concepts like right and wrong."
"Well," said Spike, "it's just that it's not the first time I've heard it. Mind you I was being tortured at the time and all. But I do remember it."
"Remember what, Spike?" Buffy asked, her patience wearing thing.
"The First," said Spike. "It said the same thing to me. That it wasn't a question of right or wrong. That the only thing that was important was power. I just think it's a damned odd thing for someone to say, that's all."
"But we defeated The First," said Buffy. "You should know. It destroyed you when you destroyed it."
"It can't be destroyed," said Leo. "At least not in the sense that we understand destruction. The First Evil is not exactly an entity. It's more like a sentient force. You can't destroy it any more than you could destroy the wind. At best you would have rendered it with so little power that it would take centuries or millennia to regain."
"That's what supposedly happened the last time," said Angel. "It was rendered powerless and didn't regain enough power to be a threat until Buffy faced it."
"So where was it all those centuries?" asked Paige. "If it wasn't destroyed, it must have been hiding somewhere."
"In the Hellmouth," said Buffy. "When we destroyed its power the Hellmouth collapsed. Taking Sunnydale with it."
"Which means it couldn't be in the Hellmouth any longer," said Leo. "The power and evil the Elders sensed is powerful enough it could be The First. And as I told you, it appears to be heading toward San Francisco."
"You're not saying what I think you're saying," Chris said to Leo.
"Do you have a better explanation?" Leo asked. "Even as a baby, Wyatt is so powerful no low-level demon like a Collector could drain him. It wouldn't be able to get through his force field. And Collectors don't hang around for long. If they can't get what they want, they move on pretty quickly."
"Are you saying The First still exists?" Buffy asked. "After all we went through to defeat it? After all the deaths and pain and suffering? That it's still out there just waiting to try again?"
"Like I said," said Leo, "it can't truly be destroyed. I don't think it's a coincidence that my son was infected with the essence of a demon at the same time this thing is heading for San Francisco. I don't think he was infected with the essence of a demon. And I don't think a Collector attacked him and was vanished by the girls. I think The First came to San Francisco to get Wyatt's power and when the girls intervened, it took refuge in the last place anyone would think to look for it. In the body of a baby."
Everyone looked over at Wyatt who was playing blissfully ignorant in his playpen. If Leo was right, it was only a matter of time before this innocent little boy became the most powerful evil in the world. And only a matter of time after that before he destroyed the world.
The End
(Be sure to look for the sequel to this story "Contrivances" coming soon that will continue the saga.)
If you've enjoyed this story, you can find more "Charmed" stories at my website, www.geocities.com/killeenmale/. You can also post your own "Charmed" stories if you like to write fan fiction.
"You vanquished it before," said Chris. "And you weren't even aware that it was coming. Now that you've been forewarned, you won't have to worry about it. As I recall, Piper simply blew it up when it became corporeal. Just don't leave baby Wyatt alone and when the Collector shows up you vanquish it like you did before."
"Sounds like a plan to me," said Buffy.
"Except that it doesn't explain what the Elders sensed," said Leo. "If this Collector isn't that powerful, it couldn't be the evil they told me about. They said it was one of the most powerful things they've sensed in a long time."
"Here now," said Spike, "you said it appeared about the same time that I got my body back?"
"I appears so," said Leo. "Why do you ask?"
"Nothing really," said Spike. "Only while I was a ghost I had this nagging feeling that I wasn't alone. That someone - or something - else was with me."
"You never mentioned that before," said Angel.
"I was never a ghost before," said Spike. "The whole thing was a bit new to me. I just figured that's how it felt to be dead for real. When I got my body back, I didn't feel it any more."
"Do you think something might have hitched a ride with Spike?" Buffy asked.
"I don't know," said Leo. "I've never heard of anything that could do that."
"There's something else," said Spike. "When that Wyatt fella' appeared in Angels' office. He said the queerest thing. Had me thinking some bloody crazy thoughts for a moment."
"What was it, Spike?" Paige asked.
"He said it wasn't about good or evil," said Spike. "It was about power."
"Wyatt use to say that all the time," said Chris. "He said I'd never understand as long as I thought in concepts of good versus evil. He said there really wasn't any difference between the two. That it was about power not some man made concepts like right and wrong."
"Well," said Spike, "it's just that it's not the first time I've heard it. Mind you I was being tortured at the time and all. But I do remember it."
"Remember what, Spike?" Buffy asked, her patience wearing thing.
"The First," said Spike. "It said the same thing to me. That it wasn't a question of right or wrong. That the only thing that was important was power. I just think it's a damned odd thing for someone to say, that's all."
"But we defeated The First," said Buffy. "You should know. It destroyed you when you destroyed it."
"It can't be destroyed," said Leo. "At least not in the sense that we understand destruction. The First Evil is not exactly an entity. It's more like a sentient force. You can't destroy it any more than you could destroy the wind. At best you would have rendered it with so little power that it would take centuries or millennia to regain."
"That's what supposedly happened the last time," said Angel. "It was rendered powerless and didn't regain enough power to be a threat until Buffy faced it."
"So where was it all those centuries?" asked Paige. "If it wasn't destroyed, it must have been hiding somewhere."
"In the Hellmouth," said Buffy. "When we destroyed its power the Hellmouth collapsed. Taking Sunnydale with it."
"Which means it couldn't be in the Hellmouth any longer," said Leo. "The power and evil the Elders sensed is powerful enough it could be The First. And as I told you, it appears to be heading toward San Francisco."
"You're not saying what I think you're saying," Chris said to Leo.
"Do you have a better explanation?" Leo asked. "Even as a baby, Wyatt is so powerful no low-level demon like a Collector could drain him. It wouldn't be able to get through his force field. And Collectors don't hang around for long. If they can't get what they want, they move on pretty quickly."
"Are you saying The First still exists?" Buffy asked. "After all we went through to defeat it? After all the deaths and pain and suffering? That it's still out there just waiting to try again?"
"Like I said," said Leo, "it can't truly be destroyed. I don't think it's a coincidence that my son was infected with the essence of a demon at the same time this thing is heading for San Francisco. I don't think he was infected with the essence of a demon. And I don't think a Collector attacked him and was vanished by the girls. I think The First came to San Francisco to get Wyatt's power and when the girls intervened, it took refuge in the last place anyone would think to look for it. In the body of a baby."
Everyone looked over at Wyatt who was playing blissfully ignorant in his playpen. If Leo was right, it was only a matter of time before this innocent little boy became the most powerful evil in the world. And only a matter of time after that before he destroyed the world.
The End
(Be sure to look for the sequel to this story "Contrivances" coming soon that will continue the saga.)
If you've enjoyed this story, you can find more "Charmed" stories at my website, www.geocities.com/killeenmale/. You can also post your own "Charmed" stories if you like to write fan fiction.