Strength
Episode 21 (Part II)
The Vineyard:
"Instead of having me blow up that Watcher's Council, I could have been here sooner, terrorizing these girls," Caleb said.
"Let's not discuss this now," The First said in the form of Buffy.
"All she needs is one more push," Caleb informed the First, changing the subject.
"That's excellent," The First/Buffy replied.
"I heard you have something of mine!" called a voice from the door.
Caleb and The First/Buffy turned to see who was intruding. Caleb smirked when he saw who it was.
"Back for more?" he questioned, "And you're all alone this time. Did your friends abandon you? You know, Christ was abandoned by his loyal disciples."
Ignoring him, Buffy walked down the stairs and approached him.
"Mr. Tough Preacher, always preaching a sermon to try and taunt people," Buffy countered, "It doesn't seem to be working, does it?"
Buffy stopped when she was about a foot away from the preacher. She smirked.
"You have no clue who you are dealing with," Caleb said, "Remember what happened the last two times?"
"See, I'm not one that lives in the past. I live for now," she replied, giving him a punch across the face.
The blow took Caleb by surprise. He stumbled backwards, but quickly came to his senses. Quicker than the eye could see, he went to hit her. Surprisingly, Buffy blocked the blow, shocking him again.
"So, what do you have that belongs to me?" she questioned.
"That, you will not discover," he replied, attempting to hit her again.
This time she ducked and countered with several sharp blows to the chest. The last punch hit him in the jaw, knocking him to the ground.
"Could it possibly be something that I could use to win?" she asked.
Caleb quickly rose to his feet and attempted a kick. Buffy countered and knocked him to the ground again.
"What's wrong, Caleb?" she questioned, "You seem to be weaker."
"This is embarrassing!" The First/Buffy called from the corner that it retreated to when Buffy entered.
Caleb seemed extremely pissed now. He rose to his feet and gave Buffy a sharp blow to the jaw. It sent her stumbling backwards. Apparently, she wasn't expecting it. He followed it up with a side kick to her chest, knocking her to the ground.
"Not so witty now, are we?" Caleb questioned.
He reached over to his left and lifted a barrel into the air. Unfortunately, he had grabbed the wrong one. On the floor where the barrel had once been, was a secret trapdoor. Buffy noticed it immediately.
Caleb tossed the barrel at her. She dove out of the way and reached the trapdoor. She threw it open. Then she turned and gave him a back kick to the chest, knocking him across the room and into a wine barrel. She then jumped down through the trapdoor.
She landed on stone floor and noticed another door at the end of the hallway. She walked towards it, cautiously. When she reached the door, she slowly opened it. She smiled at what she saw in the room.
The Sewers:
5…4…3…
"Get down!" Faith shouted in panic.
She dove behind some remains of a crate. The potentials dove to the ground for cover.
2…1…BOOM!
The bomb exploded. Debris and rubble went everywhere. The weapons had been destroyed and pieces of them flew everywhere.
As the smoke and dust cleared, Kennedy stood up. She had a major headache and various cuts and bruises all over. She glanced around at the scene. Many of the potentials lay dead or injured on the floor of the sewer. She began to panic when she didn't see Faith. Her eyes panned the debris.
Rona, Julia, Molly, Danielle, and Ashley all stirred and slowly stood up. It was apparent that they had many injuries. All the remaining potentials were dead. That's when Kennedy noticed a body underneath some rubble. She rushed over and uncovered the body. It was in fact Faith. She was barely breathing but still alive.
"We have to get her out of here!" Kennedy called to the others.
Danielle, Ashley, Rona, and Kennedy lifted Faith's body up and they all proceeded to leave the area. They had walked clear into a trap. It was as if the Bringer knew that it would be captured and Caleb had planted the bomb there for that reason. Whatever it was, Faith was unconscious and barely alive and various potentials were dead.
The six girls continued their journey through the sewers. They had no clue where in fact they were going. They had no idea how to get out of there. That's when they heard a loud and ferocious growl coming from the darkness behind them.
The Vineyard:
Caleb had regained his senses and followed Buffy through the trapdoor. Buffy now stood before an axe-like weapon imbedded in rock. She walked up and stared at it. It looked all-power, capable of taking out anything. She reached down and gripped it tightly.
"Go ahead and try and pull it out!" Caleb urged, "Do you think you'll be able to remove it from solid rock before I come over there and…"
She pulled. It came loose! She smiled as she held it up. Caleb stared in horror and she brandished the mighty weapon. He couldn't believe that she had actually removed it. He didn't think that anyone would have been able to. The carving had been referring to her, the one who alone could wield it.
"Damn," he muttered.
"Looks like you're in trouble now," Buffy smirked, holding the weapon.
"Give it to me!" he commanded.
"I don't think so," she replied, "Besides, remember it is for me alone to wield."
She shoved the wood end at him. He fell to the ground. She took this time to rush back to the trapdoor and escape. She reached up with one hand and swung up and out of the door. She fled the vineyard, still grasping the weapon.
Caleb pulled himself out of the trapdoor. He brushed himself off and muttered in disbelief. He couldn't believe that she was the one chosen to remove the all-powerful weapon. The First/Buffy approached him.
"Don't worry," it comforted, "We'll get it when she has her back turned."
Caleb smiled at this thought.
The Sewers:
The girls all froze in their tracks when they heard that growl. They sure did not want to know what made it. Kennedy gathered her courage and turned around. She saw them, two Ubervamps running towards them in the darkness. She and the other girls put Faith down. They all began to panic except for Kennedy. She was finally going to get a chance to prove herself and maybe even become the leader of the group.
She took an axe that Molly had been carrying and walked forward, prepared to take on these two monstrous vampires. The Ubervamps charged and Kennedy swung the axe. It broke in half when it hit one of the vampires. A look of fear crept across her face. The other girls began to panic even more. They all knew that they would die now.
Kennedy pulled a stake out of her pocket and the second vampire impaled itself onto it.
"I got it!" she exclaimed.
The look of excitement quickly changed when she noticed that the Ubervamp was still standing. The stake was stuck in its chest. It growled loudly and pulled the stake out. It swung a massive arm at Kennedy. She jumped back, but didn't escape injury. The stake slashed her across her shoulder, leaving a deep wound. She cried in pain. Then it smacked her across the sewer.
The first Ubervamp was terrorizing the other girls. Molly swung the other axe at it. The Ubervamp grabbed the handle in midair, tearing it from her hand. She screamed and turned to run. She walked right into the second Ubervamp and screamed once again.
Why did she have to come on this mission? She was still injured from last time. She couldn't really even fight. She couldn't fight with a broken arm. All these thoughts were running through her head during all this. She knew that she was definitely going to die. No one could save them.
Julia summoned up all her courage and jumped onto the first Ubervamp's back. It reached around and grabbed her off. Then it tossed her across the sewer. Instead of continuing their attack on Molly, the two Ubervamps came after Julia, who was lying on her back in the sewer waters.
Julia screamed as they advanced. She was injured and scared stiff. She couldn't get herself to move. She was frozen with fear. Thoughts rushed into her head. 'Why did I agree to go on this mission? Why did I help Molly? I'm so stupid! Now I'm gonna die because of my own stupid mistakes! Why isn't anyone helping me?' she thought as the vampires closed in on her.
Kennedy stood up and looked on in horror. She saw the Ubervamps advancing on Julia, but there was nothing she could do. She couldn't fight them off. They were too strong. The other girls stood there panicking. Their friend was going to die and there was nothing they could do.
Julia screamed again. This time, hoping the other girls realized what danger she was in. But they didn't, none of them moved to help her. They all stood there in horror. She glanced over at Faith's unconscious body. She didn't even stir. This was it. She was going to die. And there was no one that was going to save her.
Suddenly, one of the Ubervamps was hit from behind. The blow didn't really phase it, but it certainly startled it.
"Do you actually think I'd let you kill her?" Jake questioned, holding a mace in his hand.
The second Ubervamp swung its fist, knocking the mace from his hand. The mace flew across the sewers and hit the side of the tunnel.
"Uh oh," Jake muttered.
The Ubervamp swung its fist again. Jake ducked and the Ubervamp hit the wall. Jake took this time to grab Julia and run. He reached the other girls and Faith, who was still unconscious. Willow was also there. She was helping to nurse Kennedy's wounds.
"I'm so glad you two got here," Molly said.
"Me too!" Danielle exclaimed.
"How'd you know where we were?" Kennedy questioned.
"I'll explain later," Willow replied, "We still have a problem here."
The Ubervamps had recovered and began advancing on the whole group. Panic came across the girls' faces once again.
"What do we do now?" Molly asked.
"Willow! Use your magik!" Kennedy exclaimed.
"I can't!" she shouted, "It might take over me again!"
"Willow, do it. Please!" Kennedy yelled back.
"I'm sorry, I can't," Willow replied, "I don't want to risk hurting any of you."
Jake and Julia were standing in the back of the group. Julia was still shaking.
"I thought I was going to die," Julia told him, "But you saved me."
"You still might now," he replied.
"I know, but at least now I know that if I die, it's going to be with you," she answered, slightly smiling.
"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked.
"I love you, Jake," she replied.
"Look, save that for when we get back to the house," he told her.
"Excuse me?" she questioned.
"You can tell me when we get back," he repeated, "We're gonna get out of this mess. We always do."
"Come on, Willow!" Kennedy shouted, starting to freak out, "Use your magik! Now!"
Suddenly, a manhole above the Ubervamps opened and moonlight poured in. The Ubervamps looked up to see where the light had come from. Too bad it was at the wrong time. Buffy jumped down on top of them. She was holding some sort of axe. The Ubervamps were knocked to the ground.
Buffy got to her feet and backed up. The two vampires stood up and went for the attack. She jumped back when they swung, dodging their punches. She gripped the weapon with both hands and swung it. It moved through the air like a hot knife through butter. It sliced the Ubervamps in half. They dusted instantly.
Buffy held the weapon in one hand and turned to face her friends. She smiled then turned to walk off.
"Buffy!" Willow shouted, "Where are you going?"
Buffy didn't turn back around. She just continued walking into the darkness of the sewers.
"You don't need me anymore," Buffy said, with her back turned, "You have Faith to lead you into battle. Good luck!"
And with that she disappeared in the darkness. Willow, Jake, and the girls just watched her leave. None of them went after her.
Buffy's House:
"What do you mean you let her go?" Giles questioned, "You just let her walk off?"
"Yes," Willow replied, "She said that we didn't need her anymore and that we have Faith to lead us."
Willow, Jake, and the girls had returned back to the house. They were all exhausted. Faith was still out cold and lying in Buffy's bed, upstairs.
"Well, as of right now, our leader is lying in a bed, unconscious," Giles countered, "She's in no condition at all to fight. And she probably won't be."
"Giles, she will get better. She's a slayer and slayers recover quickly," Willow responded.
"That's not the point," Giles replied, "Faith has very little experience in fighting evil. She cannot lead these girls into battle with the primal evil. Buffy can. Buffy has the strength to do so. Faith does not."
"I don't have what?" Faith questioned, coming into the kitchen.
"Nothing Faith," Giles replied, "Glad to see you're awake."
"Damn Bringers tricked me!" she exclaimed, walking out of the room with a box of cereal, "They set me up with that bomb!"
"Willow, we have to find Buffy," Giles continued, "At all costs. By the way, where is Spike?"
"Oh, I hadn't even noticed he was missing," she answered.
"I haven't seen him since the other night," Giles informed, "I saw him at the laptop and then the next thing I knew, he was gone."
"Do you think he knows where Buffy is?" she asked.
"Most likely," Giles replied, "But we have no clue where he is."
The two just stood there in silence, thinking.
"Willow, we must find both Buffy and Spike," Giles said speaking up, "We need them for this fight. There is no one else with their power. If we do not find them, then we are doomed. Then the world is over. We will all be dead."
