*CHAPTER 3: FIRST PLAN* The look on Cordelia's face is priceless, Lilah decides, watching the group re-enter the hotel on her screen. First anger, then replaced by fear, Lilah knows Cordelia is trying to determine who is behind this all, undermining her plans.

Shots ring out as Gunn and Wesley simultaneously shoot Angelus with even more tranquilizers. That guy will not be waking up for a year, Lilah thinks.

"Oh my God," says Fred, lowering her weapon and going closer to the vampire. Gunn immediately pulls her back.

"Fred, he could be faking it again!" Gunn tells her.

Fred pushes him away.

"Faking that he got driven over by a bulldozer? I don't think so."

"I don't think we should care how he came to be here. Let's get him downstairs."

Wesley's voice comes over the connection loud and clear and makes Lilah's heart beat faster a figure of speech, as Lilah's heart does not beat.

Lilah watches them lug Angelus downstairs to his cage, their voices getting lower as they move away from the recorders.

Cordelia runs up to her room again, and Lilah smugly smiles at her retreating figure.

"So Angelus really wasn't at a bar, was he?" muses Lorne, "Which means someone lured us out the hotel to drop him off for us."

"We have a friend in the night," says Cordelia from the balcony sarcastically.

Wesley clomps up the basement stairs and goes to his desk, slumping in his chair. Lilah refocuses that camera and zooms into his face for a second.

He picks up the parchment and examines it closely. Lilah sees him shifting into research mode.

Cordelia hurries down the stairs to see what has Wesley so enthralled. She noticeably pales when she realizes that he is holding the parchment that had been in her room.

"Looks like our guest didn't only drop off Angelus," Wesley murmurs.

Lilah smiles and silently cheers him on.

Cordelia runs up to her room once more, and Lilah switches screens to see what's going on up there.

The door slams shut loudly, and Lilah winces at the sound, turning the dial to 'medium.' Cordelia grabs what Lilah took to be a crystal ball paperweight, sits down and closes her eyes.

"This is not the time for yoga," says Lilah chidingly, peering at the screen.

The globe starts to glow the same shade of eerie green as the panties Lilah found in her room. It rises out of Cordelia's hands. Lilah hums along with the glowing globe. Cordelia's eyes fly open, and they are pure white, just like they were when Cordelia had the vision telling them how to restore Angel's soul.

A voice issues from Cordelia's lips. But it is not Cordelia's voice; it is soft and soothing, almost loving.

"My dear, what's wrong now?"

Now Cordelia speaks.

"They're gone."

Cordelia's voice hisses like a snake.

"The ruby and the spells are gone. Have you seen anything? Do you know who did it? Who brought us Angelus?"

The soft voice is soothing, even to Lilah, but the words chill her.

"One who is dead."

"You mean a vampire?" hisses Cordelia.

"Not necessarily," says the voice lovingly.

"Who else do I know who's dead? Jasmine, tell me."

The soft voice comes from Cordelia again.

"Dear, you'll have to look into yourself for answers. But be careful. She will be coming to see you soon."

"Can you muster up anything a little more vague?" Cordelia spits out angrily.

"Cordelia, my child, your anger will destroy you in the end. Soothe yourself. It will be alright."

The voice pauses, and Cordelia's lips are still.

"She is out for your blood. I know no more. I will discuss this with my First. Oh, and Cordelia, your efforts are not in vain. The Hellmouth plan is successful so far, so even if Los Angeles does not fall completely, it will work out satisfactorily. "

The globe flashes with light and drops to the floor, and Lilah ponders all she has heard.

~

Cordelia stays in her room for hours. Lilah alternates between watching Cordelia and Wesley. Wesley is immersed in the parchment, and already is making headway. He determines that these spells were used to remove the sun.

Cordelia seems to be deciding what to do now. She paces in her room, back and forth, wearing out a track in the carpet. By the sixth hour in the dark morning, it seems that Cordelia decides on a plan.

She goes downstairs and announces she has had a vision.

The gang crowds around her as she describes what they will need to bring the sun back.

"Now that we have the spell, we're going to need Gunn, trust me, it'll work this time."

"Cordy, I'm not saying I don't trust you, but remember that vision telling us how to restore Angel's soul?"

"That was different," insists Cordelia.

"We had nothing before but my vision to lead us on, and now we have the spell. We just need some things to make it work. The Powers are on our side."

Lilah smiles sadly.

"No, they're not."

But the Fang Gang takes Cordelia's words to heart and disperse confidently to find the objects needed. Now that Angelus is locked up, the Beast isn't nearly as scary. Wesley stays behind to mind Angelus and continue translating.

Cordelia has left with the group as well, and Lilah begins to wonder what the plan is. Cordelia answers her by doubling back to the hotel and knocking Wesley out from behind with a crowbar. Angelus is still unconscious.

She enters the lobby and Lilah watches her stand in the pentagram still painted on the lobby floor. She holds the globe and begins to chant again, but Lilah cannot stand the wait any longer. She's going to kill Cordelia, it will be okay if Cordelia sees her murderer.

Lilah hides the car in an alley, and walks back to the hotel.

She interrupts Cordelia in the middle of her conversation with herself.

"Always nice to see old friends again, isn't it?" says Lilah.

Cordelia's white eyes turn to her and Lilah meets her empty gaze. Cordelia puts the globe down and shakes her head. The color is restored to her eyes.

"You," says Cordelia with a touch of fear in her voice.

"Me," agrees Lilah with a smile.

"So you were the one who caught Angelus. What were you hoping, that he would jump on us and have a blood bath? Cuz that was my plan."

Lilah continues to smile.

"You've come back to get your revenge, haven't you? Bitches like you never learn."

Lilah is knocked to the floor by a swift kick from Cordelia. Cordelia grabs her head and leans in close to whisper in her ear.

"Now that you're dead you really won't be that hard to take down in a fight. Not like it was hard the first time."

Lilah lies still as Cordelia slaps her around a little.

"Not revenge," says Lilah with a fake smile, "just wanna know why."

"You came back from the dead to find out why I killed you? That is so pitiful. I expected more out of you."

"Well, actually the firm wants to know, but hey, let's not quibble on specifics."

Cordelia grabs her by the wrists and drags her body to the basement door.

"I guess I'll just make sure your dead body's really dead-"

Cordelia drops Lilah's wrists as she feels a needle penetrate her wrist. She tries to shake Lilah off, but Lilah drags her to the ground and forces the rest of the contents of the syringe into her arm.

Cordelia responds by kicking Lilah with enough force to propel her across the floor. Lilah gets up, pulls another syringe out of her pocket and attacks Cordelia with it.

Cordelia's attempts to fend off her attack are clumsy. The drug is not taking complete effect. It must be the demon in her, realizes Lilah.

But sluggish is good too, and Lilah barely manages to drag her to the couch and chain her up like she had done to Angelus. Weakly, she sits down in a chair in front of her.

"Cordelia, it looks like I have the upper hand now. Why don't you tell me about your little ploy to take over the world and I'll see what I can do about sparing your life?"

"I don't believe you." Cordelia spits the words out at her.

Lilah kneels in front of her.

"Cordelia, Wolfram and Hart has always had this policy of not killing Angel. And even though I could have killed him I never did. Wolfram and Hart doesn't want you killed as well, and since I'm putty in their hands right now, I think I'm going to listen."

Lilah keeps an emotionless face throughout her speech. If Cordelia thinks she is going to kill her, she will probably go to the grave with her secrets. Wolfram and Hart might give her extra points for finding out the motivation and plans.

Cordelia considers her words.

"Although if you don't talk they said it's ok to kill you. They'll interrogate you in Hell instead, and let me tell you, if you think it's bad here And as a bonus, I won't tell your beloved friends about you."

This convinces Cordelia and she glares at Lilah.

"What do you want to know?"

"Well, I don't really need a motive. World domination is always a biggie. So how 'bout you tell me about how it was going to happen?"

"Basically, one of the Powers was going to harness the power of all the Hellmouths and create a field of energy that could trap the world. The other Hellmouths aren't so heavily guarded, so she's focusing on Sunnydale."

"What is she doing in Sunnydale? Who's her First?" Lilah remembers the reference from spying on Cordelia's conversation.

"The First isn't a Power, but he's really strong as well. He's sort of a king of the dead. He can appear as anyone who has died. He wanted to up his status up there. His goal is the spread of evil-wait that sounds just like Wolfram and Hart- but Jasmine doesn't mind sharing."

"L.A. isn't a Hellmouth though."

"No, but I'm here, and she needs me to anchor her to this reality, so she's decided to make this her headquarters. Anything else?"

"Why this reality?"

Cordelia stared at her.

"How do you know so much already?"

"I was briefed."

"The Powers claim realities for themselves, and Jasmine wants one too. She wants a world she could rule and manipulate the way she wants. Technically there is supposed to be at least one reality that is not tampered with, and this was it. Now there aren't any untampered realities left, it could get messier."

"Aren't there infinite realities?" asks Lilah.

"It gets confusing," admits Cordelia, "sort of, but not really. I don't quite get it."

Lilah considers this information for a long moment. Abruptly, Cordelia rises and shakes off her chains.

"It was nice talking to you," she sneers as she goes for the kill.

Lilah is caught off guard. She must not have chained her properly. Cordelia wrestles her to the floor and bangs her head on the marble repeatedly, hoping to crack her skull it seems.

Each bang makes a noise, which becomes rhythmic after a while. With the pounding in her head, Lilah almost can hear voices.

Cordelia must die, they demand. Cordelia must die, they scream. Cordelia must die, they whisper.

The pounding in her head increases, each pound accompanied by 'Cordelia must die.'

Cordelia must die, and Lilah must kill her. She breaks away from Cordelia and drags her weak body across the floor. Her fingers come into contact with the paperweight that Cordelia had used to speak to Jasmine. She lifts it up and brings it down onto Cordelia's forehead. Once, twice, three times, each time lessens the pounding voices in her mind, until Cordelia lies motionless on the floor with blood pouring from her head.

Lilah drops to the floor in pain, both physical and emotional, and everything she has been holding in since her death comes pouring out in torrents. Sobs rack her throat and reduce her to a quivering shape on the bloody floor.

Lilah cries for the pain she is going through, for the life she should still have, for Wesley, for everyone.

She sits next to Cordelia's unmoving body and laments her fate in this world, salty tears running down her cold cheeks, washing away the last of the whispers that murmur 'Cordelia must die."

It is over.