The prison truck had just left the city limits of LA, when the driver
spotted a parked BMW at the side of the road. A young man was kneeling in
front of the left front wheel and trying from the look of it to change the
tire. The driver slowed the truck down and parked it a couple of meters
behind the car.
The two guards exchanged looks. Finally the left one shook his head with a grin.
"Those damn yuppies. Can't even change a tire," he exclaimed as he opened the door of the truck. "Well, let's see if we can help."
The guard stepped out of the truck and walked up to the car.
"Excuse me sir," the guard asked. "Do you need help?"
The man stood up and smiled at the guard. "Yeah, I really could use a helping hand," Xander told him. "I'm not a very technical person."
"That shouldn't be a problem," the guard said and kneeled down. Xander meanwhile moved behind the guard, blocking the view of the second guard on his partner. The guard finally found the problem.
"Wait a second," he said and frowned. "The tire is fine." But unseen from him Xander had drawn a silenced MK23. He hit the guard with the butt of the weapon, knocking him unconscious.
The only thing the guard in the prison truck could see was that his partner went down. . But before he could react Xander had whirled around and fired a single round at him. The .45 cal bullet went right through the windshield and the guard's head, killing him instantly.
Xander shortly kneeled down in order to retrieve the first guard's keys and walked in the direction of the prison truck.
He stepped into the car and opened the cage, where the only prisoner was busy struggling with the shackles that held her in place. But she immediately stopped when she saw Xander walking into the back of truck.
She looked him directly in the eyes and Xander returned her gaze for a few seconds. Finally he returned the pistol into his holster and sat down on the bench on the opposite site of the slayer.
"So, you are the new slayer," he said and eyed her from head to toe. "You don't look that impressive."
"Fuck you," Faith snarled and tried her hardest to kill her enemy by just glaring at him.
"And what a dirty mouth you have. I think I like you," he told her with a smile, but grew quickly serious again. "Well, a job is a job. Any last wishes?"
"Yeah," she said and motioned with her head for him to lean closer. Xander thought about it for a second, but finally complied and leaned closer, so his ear was only a few inches away from her mouth. "Scream my name when you die," she whispered into his ear. But before Xander could react, she threw her head back and slammed is as fast as she could in the direction of the assassin, head butting him hard. The force of the blow threw Xander back on the bench and left him dazed for a few seconds.
That was all the time Faith needed. The chains of he shackles that were already damaged from her previous attempts finally snapped..
Right after that she let loose a series of punches on Xander, who tried his hardest block the attack. Finally, Faith took a large swing at his head , but he caught her fist in his hand and held it there.
"My turn her whispered back," and slammed Faith own fist repeatedly into her face. That gave Xander enough time to stand up. He continued with a punch to her face that sent her stumbling back.
Faith countered with kick at Xander's head, but the assassin quickly ducked under the attack and kicked her supporting leg out from under her.
Faith landed hard on the ground while Xander took a few steps back and drew his pistol from under his jacket. When Faith was back on her feet she stared at the muzzle of the deadly weapon. Slowly she lifted her arms after some motioning from Xander's side.
"Whoa," Xander said and took a deep breath. "I have to say I'm impressed. Thought those shackles might hold you," he exclaimed but shrugged. "Guess there are stronger slayers out there than Buffy."
"Wait a fucking second," Faith gasped out, the surprise audible in her voice. "Buffy? You mean Queen B?"
"Never heard that nickname before, but I think we are talking about the same person," Xander told "Still, doesn't change the situation."
"Now I know why you seemed familiar," Faith said. "You are their friend, right? Xander or something like that?"
"Oh," Xander said mock touched. "So they are still talking about me. I should feel honoured. And for the records, it's former friend," he clarified her previous statement.
"Friend, former friend, I don't really care," Faith said uninterested. "So what, you are going to kill me now?"
"That' the plan," Xander told her. "Someone paid a lot of money to see you dead."
"Juts one question. Who is going to save the world if you kill me?"
"What are you talking about" Xander asked with a raised eyebrow.
"You'll let me explain?" Faith asked. After a second Xander nodded. "Okay, fact is B and her friend a facing a major threat down in Sunnydale."
"And that's something new ? There is always a major threat in Sunnydale," threw Xander back in a sing song voice.
But Faith shook her head. "No, this time I worse. I'm talking apocalyptic bad. They are fighting a hellgoddess. And they are not winning. That's why they wanted me back. The Council managed for me get me pardoned so I could help them. I was on my way to Sunnydale when you stopped us."
"And why do they need you there?" Xander stated. "Buffy and the rest will handle it like they always do."
"Like I said, they are not winning. That's the reason I could think of. Otherwise they wouldn't call for my help," Faith said, emphasizing the word my.
Xander took a minute to muster the dark slayer a bit closer. "And what did you do to get the slayer's wrath on you," he finally asked.
"I killed a few people," Faith muttered. "And I worked for the other side. Then she stabbed me and put me into a coma."
Even if the situation was anything that funny, Xander could help but laugh at the whole thing. "Yeah, she is a real piece of work," he said still shaking and wiped a tear form his eyes. "Me, she put me into a wheelchair. Not for long but she still did," he said and shook his head. "Time's up slayer. Still, bad luck for you. I have a contract to fulfil," Xander said and raised the pistol.
"Are you stupid you dumb fuck," Faith interrupted him with anger. "Armageddon, Apocalypse. The world is going to be destroyed. That means you will also be killed. Even if you don't like Queen Buffy, survival should be a pretty good argument to let me leave, don't you think so? Hey, if you let me leave and we manage to save the world you can still kill me. "
Xander thought about her words, but he couldn't find an argument against them. But he didn't lower the pistol in his hands. Finally he made a decision.
"Here," he said and threw the guard's keys in Faith's direction who was barely able to catch them.
"Come on," Xander said and walked out of the truck, Faith followed him, while removing the rest of the shackles from her wrists.
"Wait a second," she stopped him. "I never said that I want to go with you."
"Look Faith," Xander said as they walked up to his car. "You made some good points back there. If you told me the truth about the Apocalypse, then I will forget about my contract. I may be some cold hearted bastard, but even I don't want to see the world sucked into hell. But if you lied to me, then I will kill you in a very creative way. And believe me, I've got pretty creative over the years."
Faith swallowed hard while the two walked up to Xander's car, just as the first guard tried to stand up. Xander dimply kicked him in the head, knocking him out for the second time.
"So, to Sunnydale," Xander said as the two stepped into the car.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------
"So what do you know about this enemy we're facing?" Xander finally asked after the two sat there for half an hour in silence. Xander floored the pedal as they sped towards Sunnydale
"Not much. Invincible, super strong, super fast," Faith explained and counted with her fingers. "Also has a lot of minions. She is searching for something called the key. It's something that has the power to send her back to her dimension, but that would also destroy the rest of this universe."
"And what is that key?" Xander asked.
"I don't know," Faith admitted. "I think B knows it, but she didn't want to talk about it on the phone."
"First smart move she ever did," Xander muttered
"So tell me," Faith asked. "What's your problem with Queen B?"
"Already said it," Xander said "She put me in a wheelchair."
"Care to tell a bit more," Faith said with growing interest. "Because when I asked about your photo they told me that you were their best friend but that you had to leave the town. Always knew there was something else behind that, but I never asked."
Xander looked a few second at the slayer. Finally he sighed. "You ever heard of Angel."
"Yeah, Buffy's ex. Vampire with soul, lost it when he and B did the nasty and was killed shortly after that.," Faith summed up what she had heard during her time in Sunnydale. "Red told me the story once."
"Yeah," Xander agreed with a dry laugh. "What she didn't tell is that I was the one who killed him."
"You," Faith said with wide eyes. "You killed the scourge of Europe?" Xander only nodded. "I'm already feeling honoured just sitting here next to you. So what happened?"
"Buffy lost it," Xander said "She beat me up, I fell down a staircase while she did it.. broke my spine and ended up paralysed."
"Ouch," Faith exclaimed with a grimace. "So, how come you can walk again:"
"Someone offered me to take me out of the wheelchair. And I accepted that offer."
"And the same guys ordered you to kill me?" Faith asked. "I'm curious. how much money would someone pay just to get rid of me."
"5 Million dollars;" Xander said
"Wow. That much," Faith exclaimed shocked. Xander nodded. "I never knew I was worth that much."
The conversation trailed off as they entered the outskirts of Sunnydale.
"So, what are you gonna do when this is over?" Faith asked finally. "Want to give B a bit of her own medicine?"
"I haven't thought about it.....", Xander started but quickly stopped when he saw what was going on the other side of the street.
Faith followed his gaze and spotted what he saw. But like him she couldn't believe what she was seeing. Xander immediately stepped on the brakes, stopping right on the street. Both took another looked through the back of the car before they looked at each other.
"Tell me if I'm mistaken," Xander exclaimed "but was that there a campervan with knights chasing it."
"Yep," Faith said. "And a blonde a that awfully looked like B fighting them on top of it."
"Just wanted to check," Xander said and turned the car in the direction the trailed and the knights had taken. "Thought the job finally caught up with me," he said and stepped on the gas pedal.
The two guards exchanged looks. Finally the left one shook his head with a grin.
"Those damn yuppies. Can't even change a tire," he exclaimed as he opened the door of the truck. "Well, let's see if we can help."
The guard stepped out of the truck and walked up to the car.
"Excuse me sir," the guard asked. "Do you need help?"
The man stood up and smiled at the guard. "Yeah, I really could use a helping hand," Xander told him. "I'm not a very technical person."
"That shouldn't be a problem," the guard said and kneeled down. Xander meanwhile moved behind the guard, blocking the view of the second guard on his partner. The guard finally found the problem.
"Wait a second," he said and frowned. "The tire is fine." But unseen from him Xander had drawn a silenced MK23. He hit the guard with the butt of the weapon, knocking him unconscious.
The only thing the guard in the prison truck could see was that his partner went down. . But before he could react Xander had whirled around and fired a single round at him. The .45 cal bullet went right through the windshield and the guard's head, killing him instantly.
Xander shortly kneeled down in order to retrieve the first guard's keys and walked in the direction of the prison truck.
He stepped into the car and opened the cage, where the only prisoner was busy struggling with the shackles that held her in place. But she immediately stopped when she saw Xander walking into the back of truck.
She looked him directly in the eyes and Xander returned her gaze for a few seconds. Finally he returned the pistol into his holster and sat down on the bench on the opposite site of the slayer.
"So, you are the new slayer," he said and eyed her from head to toe. "You don't look that impressive."
"Fuck you," Faith snarled and tried her hardest to kill her enemy by just glaring at him.
"And what a dirty mouth you have. I think I like you," he told her with a smile, but grew quickly serious again. "Well, a job is a job. Any last wishes?"
"Yeah," she said and motioned with her head for him to lean closer. Xander thought about it for a second, but finally complied and leaned closer, so his ear was only a few inches away from her mouth. "Scream my name when you die," she whispered into his ear. But before Xander could react, she threw her head back and slammed is as fast as she could in the direction of the assassin, head butting him hard. The force of the blow threw Xander back on the bench and left him dazed for a few seconds.
That was all the time Faith needed. The chains of he shackles that were already damaged from her previous attempts finally snapped..
Right after that she let loose a series of punches on Xander, who tried his hardest block the attack. Finally, Faith took a large swing at his head , but he caught her fist in his hand and held it there.
"My turn her whispered back," and slammed Faith own fist repeatedly into her face. That gave Xander enough time to stand up. He continued with a punch to her face that sent her stumbling back.
Faith countered with kick at Xander's head, but the assassin quickly ducked under the attack and kicked her supporting leg out from under her.
Faith landed hard on the ground while Xander took a few steps back and drew his pistol from under his jacket. When Faith was back on her feet she stared at the muzzle of the deadly weapon. Slowly she lifted her arms after some motioning from Xander's side.
"Whoa," Xander said and took a deep breath. "I have to say I'm impressed. Thought those shackles might hold you," he exclaimed but shrugged. "Guess there are stronger slayers out there than Buffy."
"Wait a fucking second," Faith gasped out, the surprise audible in her voice. "Buffy? You mean Queen B?"
"Never heard that nickname before, but I think we are talking about the same person," Xander told "Still, doesn't change the situation."
"Now I know why you seemed familiar," Faith said. "You are their friend, right? Xander or something like that?"
"Oh," Xander said mock touched. "So they are still talking about me. I should feel honoured. And for the records, it's former friend," he clarified her previous statement.
"Friend, former friend, I don't really care," Faith said uninterested. "So what, you are going to kill me now?"
"That' the plan," Xander told her. "Someone paid a lot of money to see you dead."
"Juts one question. Who is going to save the world if you kill me?"
"What are you talking about" Xander asked with a raised eyebrow.
"You'll let me explain?" Faith asked. After a second Xander nodded. "Okay, fact is B and her friend a facing a major threat down in Sunnydale."
"And that's something new ? There is always a major threat in Sunnydale," threw Xander back in a sing song voice.
But Faith shook her head. "No, this time I worse. I'm talking apocalyptic bad. They are fighting a hellgoddess. And they are not winning. That's why they wanted me back. The Council managed for me get me pardoned so I could help them. I was on my way to Sunnydale when you stopped us."
"And why do they need you there?" Xander stated. "Buffy and the rest will handle it like they always do."
"Like I said, they are not winning. That's the reason I could think of. Otherwise they wouldn't call for my help," Faith said, emphasizing the word my.
Xander took a minute to muster the dark slayer a bit closer. "And what did you do to get the slayer's wrath on you," he finally asked.
"I killed a few people," Faith muttered. "And I worked for the other side. Then she stabbed me and put me into a coma."
Even if the situation was anything that funny, Xander could help but laugh at the whole thing. "Yeah, she is a real piece of work," he said still shaking and wiped a tear form his eyes. "Me, she put me into a wheelchair. Not for long but she still did," he said and shook his head. "Time's up slayer. Still, bad luck for you. I have a contract to fulfil," Xander said and raised the pistol.
"Are you stupid you dumb fuck," Faith interrupted him with anger. "Armageddon, Apocalypse. The world is going to be destroyed. That means you will also be killed. Even if you don't like Queen Buffy, survival should be a pretty good argument to let me leave, don't you think so? Hey, if you let me leave and we manage to save the world you can still kill me. "
Xander thought about her words, but he couldn't find an argument against them. But he didn't lower the pistol in his hands. Finally he made a decision.
"Here," he said and threw the guard's keys in Faith's direction who was barely able to catch them.
"Come on," Xander said and walked out of the truck, Faith followed him, while removing the rest of the shackles from her wrists.
"Wait a second," she stopped him. "I never said that I want to go with you."
"Look Faith," Xander said as they walked up to his car. "You made some good points back there. If you told me the truth about the Apocalypse, then I will forget about my contract. I may be some cold hearted bastard, but even I don't want to see the world sucked into hell. But if you lied to me, then I will kill you in a very creative way. And believe me, I've got pretty creative over the years."
Faith swallowed hard while the two walked up to Xander's car, just as the first guard tried to stand up. Xander dimply kicked him in the head, knocking him out for the second time.
"So, to Sunnydale," Xander said as the two stepped into the car.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------
"So what do you know about this enemy we're facing?" Xander finally asked after the two sat there for half an hour in silence. Xander floored the pedal as they sped towards Sunnydale
"Not much. Invincible, super strong, super fast," Faith explained and counted with her fingers. "Also has a lot of minions. She is searching for something called the key. It's something that has the power to send her back to her dimension, but that would also destroy the rest of this universe."
"And what is that key?" Xander asked.
"I don't know," Faith admitted. "I think B knows it, but she didn't want to talk about it on the phone."
"First smart move she ever did," Xander muttered
"So tell me," Faith asked. "What's your problem with Queen B?"
"Already said it," Xander said "She put me in a wheelchair."
"Care to tell a bit more," Faith said with growing interest. "Because when I asked about your photo they told me that you were their best friend but that you had to leave the town. Always knew there was something else behind that, but I never asked."
Xander looked a few second at the slayer. Finally he sighed. "You ever heard of Angel."
"Yeah, Buffy's ex. Vampire with soul, lost it when he and B did the nasty and was killed shortly after that.," Faith summed up what she had heard during her time in Sunnydale. "Red told me the story once."
"Yeah," Xander agreed with a dry laugh. "What she didn't tell is that I was the one who killed him."
"You," Faith said with wide eyes. "You killed the scourge of Europe?" Xander only nodded. "I'm already feeling honoured just sitting here next to you. So what happened?"
"Buffy lost it," Xander said "She beat me up, I fell down a staircase while she did it.. broke my spine and ended up paralysed."
"Ouch," Faith exclaimed with a grimace. "So, how come you can walk again:"
"Someone offered me to take me out of the wheelchair. And I accepted that offer."
"And the same guys ordered you to kill me?" Faith asked. "I'm curious. how much money would someone pay just to get rid of me."
"5 Million dollars;" Xander said
"Wow. That much," Faith exclaimed shocked. Xander nodded. "I never knew I was worth that much."
The conversation trailed off as they entered the outskirts of Sunnydale.
"So, what are you gonna do when this is over?" Faith asked finally. "Want to give B a bit of her own medicine?"
"I haven't thought about it.....", Xander started but quickly stopped when he saw what was going on the other side of the street.
Faith followed his gaze and spotted what he saw. But like him she couldn't believe what she was seeing. Xander immediately stepped on the brakes, stopping right on the street. Both took another looked through the back of the car before they looked at each other.
"Tell me if I'm mistaken," Xander exclaimed "but was that there a campervan with knights chasing it."
"Yep," Faith said. "And a blonde a that awfully looked like B fighting them on top of it."
"Just wanted to check," Xander said and turned the car in the direction the trailed and the knights had taken. "Thought the job finally caught up with me," he said and stepped on the gas pedal.