*PROLOGUE*
Lilah runs down the hall panting for breath. Leaning against a door, she removes her hand from the hole in her belly and looks despairingly at the blood on her fingers. If Angelus doesn't manage to kill her, the blood loss will finish the job. She starts to limp towards the staircase. She needs to get downstairs, find Cordelia, call Wesley, get out before Angelus gets up-- -
A hand abruptly grabs her by the neck. Angelus! Lilah gasps and blinks, seeing Cordelia?
"He's going to kill us," rasps Lilah. It had been Cordelia the whole time, hadn't it? The Beast's mistress? Cordelia's acting was much better than Lilah gave her credit for.
Cordelia pulls out a large ornate dagger and runs her eyes up and down the blade. With a satisfied smirk, she stabs Lilah in the neck, piercing a vein, letting her lifeblood drip out of her body as Lilah falls to the floor. The last words she hears are Cordelia's, cruel and mocking. Fitting last words, considering that Lilah had lived her life that way.
"You stupid bitch. Why do you think I let him out?"
*CHAPTER 1: THE MISSION*
Lilah does not expect to wake up on a very nice Armani leather couch, in an empty room painted soft tones of beige with dark corners. There are no doors or windows.
She lies still for some moments, recalling Cordelia and the dagger. She touches her neck and feels the holes the dagger made. The Beast inflicted wound is still raw and oozing, but no longer aches.
"Hello? If this is Hell, where's the welcoming party? The fire and brimstone, Ole' Scratch and his pitchfork?" calls out Lilah.
No response.
"Am I destined to live for eternity in a box? Hey, it could be worse."
She hears a chuckle, and a figure emerges from the shadows.
"I knew it," says Lilah, "my first experience in Hell would have to be seeing you again." Linwood attempts to stare her down, as he did in the old days. Like in the old days, it does not work.
"Hello to you too, Lilah."
Linwood is wearing the same suit he was wearing the day Lilah chopped off his head. His shirt collar does not hide the place where his head meets his neck. Linwood catches her staring.
"Looks like you got the crap beaten out of you," says Linwood with a smirk. "By a vampire no less. Was it our friend Angel?"
Lilah fingers her neck again. "Angel didn't kill me. The evil cheerleader did." "And that brings us to why you are sitting in a room instead of being introduced to your accommodations for the next eternity or so. There is a problem," says Linwood.
"What, I got into Heaven? I'm being transferred?"
"Lilah, something very wrong has happened. Miss Chase and the Beast should have never destroyed Wolfram and Hart. Sadly to say, you weren't supposed to die either. Something's gone wrong in the cosmic order of things."
Linwood paces across the room and continues.
"As you may or may not know, there is more than one reality existing at any given point in time. To tell us more about this is your favorite co-worker, Gavin."
Gavin enters the room from the shadows and smirks at Lilah. He has pale, dead skin and blemishes all over his skin, blood splattered on his clothes; the look of a zombie.
"So nice to see you again, Lilah. I knew we'd always work together again in the end."
"Gavin, get to the point please. You're probably wasting time that could be better spent licking Hell's public relations representative," says Lilah sweetly.
Gavin grimaces and begins.
"There are multiple realities existing at once. They are identical realities that may or may not be running the same as our own. Apparently one of the Powers committed the unforgivable offence of tearing open a portal between our reality and another, and the events have blended."
"So you're saying that in another reality, Wolfram and Hart is meant to be destroyed, and everyone killed, but someone interfered and did it to our reality as well?"
"Yes. When Cordelia went to join the Powers, she was persuaded to join this plot by one of them, who's known as 'Jasmine' for her supposedly sweet personality. Cordelia was to prepare this reality for her, and then Jasmine would descend and rule over it."
"And in Wolfram and Hart's best interests this cannot happen," interjects Linwood.
"But we're not allowed to turn back the clock and erase the events. We need to eliminate Cordelia before she succeeds in preparing the world for Jasmine. If we can kill Cordelia before she finishes, Jasmine will not be able to come to this reality. She needs Cordelia to draw her here," explains Gavin.
"You come in here," says Linwood. "You've survived longest with Angel and his little friends, and the Beast. Hell, you want revenge more than anyone else, and you're getting a chance to accomplish that. So you're going back down there. Your mission: you're going to kill Cordelia and no one's going to see you do it. There is to be no Wolfram and Hart connection. So be discreet. If you do well, you may manage to be promoted from filling tax returns for eternity." Linwood tightly smiles at her.
And before Lilah can utter a word in protest or consent, she is gone.
~
Lilah wakes up again, this time in a very uncomfortable place. It is dark and dank, and tight, and she momentarily panics when she feels plastic wrapped around her face and body. Desperately trying to breathe, she manages to tighten the plastic, but relaxes when she does suffocate.
She is in a grave. The clump of dirt in her eye confirms this. Lilah frees her hands and begins the slow and tedious job of digging her way out her tomb, trying not to become hysterical. She has been through so much today: a chase to a death by the hands of Cordelia, a trip to Hell, and being trapped under six feet of dirt is enough to make a girl frantic.
It takes hours for her to clear enough dirt to push her hand through the surface of the ground. Her fingers, broken and bleeding, clear a wide enough tunnel for her to drag her dead body out of its resting-place.
Lilah has never been so glad to see a tree.
She does not know how much time has passed since her death. Time in Hell may pass differently. One thing is for sure; the sun is still out.
Lilah takes in the scenery. Her gravesite is quite attractive, a narrow cliff overlooking a stormy sea. A half-buried object catches her attention. She picks it up and sees that it is a plaque, simply engraved with 'Lilah.'
Tears form in Lilah's eyes as she contemplates the plaque. Too much care had been exercised in the choice of location and the plaque. Wesley must have taken her body here and buried her.
Lilah banishes thoughts of Wesley from her mind and tries to focus on the object at hand: Cordelia's imminent death.
~
Her dead body walks slower than her live one. It takes hours until she finds a deserted gas station, with several cars still by the pumps.
She slides into one, and sees the keys in the ignition, the wheel still clutched by the driver in a death grip. A pretty blonde young woman with still open brown eyes. Lilah pries the dead hands off the wheel and dumps the body on the pavement.
When she drives out of the gas station, she hears a crunch, and realizes that she has driven over the body.
~
Lilah drives around aimlessly, unsure of her where to head. She finds herself drawn to the Hyperion Hotel. Like a ghost, she wryly thinks. She stops the car a few blocks away and leans back in the seat.
The city is quiet. No cars, no dogs barking, people talking. Just a cool night with a full moon.
Lilah does not know what to do now. She needs information and help. But she is not allowed to have contact with anyone. This will be tricky.
She closes her eyes and starts to think of a plan devious enough, sophisticated enough, and just good enough to work.
Lilah runs down the hall panting for breath. Leaning against a door, she removes her hand from the hole in her belly and looks despairingly at the blood on her fingers. If Angelus doesn't manage to kill her, the blood loss will finish the job. She starts to limp towards the staircase. She needs to get downstairs, find Cordelia, call Wesley, get out before Angelus gets up-- -
A hand abruptly grabs her by the neck. Angelus! Lilah gasps and blinks, seeing Cordelia?
"He's going to kill us," rasps Lilah. It had been Cordelia the whole time, hadn't it? The Beast's mistress? Cordelia's acting was much better than Lilah gave her credit for.
Cordelia pulls out a large ornate dagger and runs her eyes up and down the blade. With a satisfied smirk, she stabs Lilah in the neck, piercing a vein, letting her lifeblood drip out of her body as Lilah falls to the floor. The last words she hears are Cordelia's, cruel and mocking. Fitting last words, considering that Lilah had lived her life that way.
"You stupid bitch. Why do you think I let him out?"
*CHAPTER 1: THE MISSION*
Lilah does not expect to wake up on a very nice Armani leather couch, in an empty room painted soft tones of beige with dark corners. There are no doors or windows.
She lies still for some moments, recalling Cordelia and the dagger. She touches her neck and feels the holes the dagger made. The Beast inflicted wound is still raw and oozing, but no longer aches.
"Hello? If this is Hell, where's the welcoming party? The fire and brimstone, Ole' Scratch and his pitchfork?" calls out Lilah.
No response.
"Am I destined to live for eternity in a box? Hey, it could be worse."
She hears a chuckle, and a figure emerges from the shadows.
"I knew it," says Lilah, "my first experience in Hell would have to be seeing you again." Linwood attempts to stare her down, as he did in the old days. Like in the old days, it does not work.
"Hello to you too, Lilah."
Linwood is wearing the same suit he was wearing the day Lilah chopped off his head. His shirt collar does not hide the place where his head meets his neck. Linwood catches her staring.
"Looks like you got the crap beaten out of you," says Linwood with a smirk. "By a vampire no less. Was it our friend Angel?"
Lilah fingers her neck again. "Angel didn't kill me. The evil cheerleader did." "And that brings us to why you are sitting in a room instead of being introduced to your accommodations for the next eternity or so. There is a problem," says Linwood.
"What, I got into Heaven? I'm being transferred?"
"Lilah, something very wrong has happened. Miss Chase and the Beast should have never destroyed Wolfram and Hart. Sadly to say, you weren't supposed to die either. Something's gone wrong in the cosmic order of things."
Linwood paces across the room and continues.
"As you may or may not know, there is more than one reality existing at any given point in time. To tell us more about this is your favorite co-worker, Gavin."
Gavin enters the room from the shadows and smirks at Lilah. He has pale, dead skin and blemishes all over his skin, blood splattered on his clothes; the look of a zombie.
"So nice to see you again, Lilah. I knew we'd always work together again in the end."
"Gavin, get to the point please. You're probably wasting time that could be better spent licking Hell's public relations representative," says Lilah sweetly.
Gavin grimaces and begins.
"There are multiple realities existing at once. They are identical realities that may or may not be running the same as our own. Apparently one of the Powers committed the unforgivable offence of tearing open a portal between our reality and another, and the events have blended."
"So you're saying that in another reality, Wolfram and Hart is meant to be destroyed, and everyone killed, but someone interfered and did it to our reality as well?"
"Yes. When Cordelia went to join the Powers, she was persuaded to join this plot by one of them, who's known as 'Jasmine' for her supposedly sweet personality. Cordelia was to prepare this reality for her, and then Jasmine would descend and rule over it."
"And in Wolfram and Hart's best interests this cannot happen," interjects Linwood.
"But we're not allowed to turn back the clock and erase the events. We need to eliminate Cordelia before she succeeds in preparing the world for Jasmine. If we can kill Cordelia before she finishes, Jasmine will not be able to come to this reality. She needs Cordelia to draw her here," explains Gavin.
"You come in here," says Linwood. "You've survived longest with Angel and his little friends, and the Beast. Hell, you want revenge more than anyone else, and you're getting a chance to accomplish that. So you're going back down there. Your mission: you're going to kill Cordelia and no one's going to see you do it. There is to be no Wolfram and Hart connection. So be discreet. If you do well, you may manage to be promoted from filling tax returns for eternity." Linwood tightly smiles at her.
And before Lilah can utter a word in protest or consent, she is gone.
~
Lilah wakes up again, this time in a very uncomfortable place. It is dark and dank, and tight, and she momentarily panics when she feels plastic wrapped around her face and body. Desperately trying to breathe, she manages to tighten the plastic, but relaxes when she does suffocate.
She is in a grave. The clump of dirt in her eye confirms this. Lilah frees her hands and begins the slow and tedious job of digging her way out her tomb, trying not to become hysterical. She has been through so much today: a chase to a death by the hands of Cordelia, a trip to Hell, and being trapped under six feet of dirt is enough to make a girl frantic.
It takes hours for her to clear enough dirt to push her hand through the surface of the ground. Her fingers, broken and bleeding, clear a wide enough tunnel for her to drag her dead body out of its resting-place.
Lilah has never been so glad to see a tree.
She does not know how much time has passed since her death. Time in Hell may pass differently. One thing is for sure; the sun is still out.
Lilah takes in the scenery. Her gravesite is quite attractive, a narrow cliff overlooking a stormy sea. A half-buried object catches her attention. She picks it up and sees that it is a plaque, simply engraved with 'Lilah.'
Tears form in Lilah's eyes as she contemplates the plaque. Too much care had been exercised in the choice of location and the plaque. Wesley must have taken her body here and buried her.
Lilah banishes thoughts of Wesley from her mind and tries to focus on the object at hand: Cordelia's imminent death.
~
Her dead body walks slower than her live one. It takes hours until she finds a deserted gas station, with several cars still by the pumps.
She slides into one, and sees the keys in the ignition, the wheel still clutched by the driver in a death grip. A pretty blonde young woman with still open brown eyes. Lilah pries the dead hands off the wheel and dumps the body on the pavement.
When she drives out of the gas station, she hears a crunch, and realizes that she has driven over the body.
~
Lilah drives around aimlessly, unsure of her where to head. She finds herself drawn to the Hyperion Hotel. Like a ghost, she wryly thinks. She stops the car a few blocks away and leans back in the seat.
The city is quiet. No cars, no dogs barking, people talking. Just a cool night with a full moon.
Lilah does not know what to do now. She needs information and help. But she is not allowed to have contact with anyone. This will be tricky.
She closes her eyes and starts to think of a plan devious enough, sophisticated enough, and just good enough to work.
