After sunset they were all gathered in the lobby of the hotel, prepared to hear what they had discovered through the research. Wesley, of course, had the most information to give. So they all turned to him. He turned to the Rakan twins.
"Do you two know much about your ancestry?" he asked. They shook their heads.
"Not a whole lot," Toshi said. "Our dad's parents died in World War II and he was taken in by a Japanese-American family. He grew up in Florida."
"Our mom was born in San Francisco, and that's where her parents live. She died when we were little," Tomi continued.
"And Rakan was your father's given surname?" Wesley asked.
"Yeah. Why?" Tomi asked.
"Rakan is the Japanese term for the saints of Buddha, some of whom are said to possess powers of precognition," he explained. "One in particular, a warrior for the Powers That Be named Shi-Ryo, was said to possess the knowledge of all future events. He was killed in battle, but he proclaimed that his power would be passed down through the generations. After a while, the power went dorment for lack of use by those who possessed it."
"Until it got to your father," Tara said. While Wesley had focused on ancient texts, she had traced the Rakan twins' genealogy. "You're direct descendants of Shi-Ryo."
"Wolfram & Hart is interested in the power you possess," Wesley continued. "Right now it's too weak. If you've experienced it at all, it probably felt like deja vu. If they can get you to truly harness your power, they could be very dangerous."
"So Wolfram & Hart wants them in order to know the future," Gunn said. "Don't they have their own guys for that?"
"None who could predict the future in such detail," Wesley replied.
"Is there something in particular that Wolfram & Hart wants to know?" Cordelia asked. "There's gotta be."
"What about Shanshu?" Fred asked. The others—except Tara and the twins—looked to her, surprised they hadn't thought of that immediately. "They might want them because of that."
"What's Shanshu?" Tara asked.
"It's a part of the Prophecies of Aberjian," Wesley replied. The name of the prophecies meant nothing to Tara or the twins, so he didn't wait for them to possibly recognize it. "Without getting into specifics, it basically states that a vampire with a soul shall be the champion for the Powers That Be. Once that vampire's destiny is fulfilled, he shall become human."
"It's about Angel," Tara said.
"How does he fulfill his destiny?" Toshi asked.
"Fight countless evils and stop numerous apocalypses until the Powers decide they're done with me," Angel said in a nonchalant tone.
"And Wolfram & Hart doesn't want any of that to happen," Tara guessed.
"Pretty much," Cordelia replied. "So, if they descended from this Shi-whatever guy and they have all knowledge of future events, they would know everything that Angel has to face and how long it will take for him to become human."
"I believe so," Wesley said. "In Wolfram & Hart's hands that could be very dangerous."
"But in ours that could be pretty damn cool," Gunn said. They all looked to Angel, wondering what he thought of the prospect of knowing exactly what his future held. His facial expression gave nothing away.
"Yeah," Angel said. "That'd be nice."
* * *
The wipers swept rhythmically across the windshield of Angel's car as he drove. Not sure where to start, Angel felt it best that the first step in figuring out how to develop the twins' psychic abilities was to take them to someone who already possessed psychic abilities. So he drove them to Caritas through the rain. Tara had chosen to accompany them. She was exhausted, but she was afraid to sleep. If she slept, she would see the girl again. She'd be right back where she started.
They got out of the car and hurried through the rain toward the club, but they stopped short when three men stepped out of the shadows in front of them. They all wore suits, one of them more expensive than the other two. They turned to see three more men step behind them.
"Hello, Lindsey," Angel said. "How's the junior partnership treating you?"
"I've got no complaints," the man in the more expensive suit said.
"Wolfram & Hart?" Tara asked quietly of Angel. He nodded his head. The twins huddled close together, their eyes darting from one man to the next. Tara put herself between the twins and the three men behind them while Angel kept himself between the twins and Lindsey.
"I'd love to catch up on old times, Angel, but I'm really pressed for time," Lindsey said. He gestured and the five other men attacked. One of the men that had been by Lindsey swung at Angel with a knight stick and Angel blocked it with his arm while kicking the other man in the stomach. Tara did a roundhouse, catching two of the men in the jaw. The third was going for the twins. Tara turned and grabbed him by the arm, spinning and sending him crashing against the wall.
Suddenly she screamed as electricity surged through her body. She fell to her knees, stunned by the taser blast. She turned, pulled the taser barbs out of her back and yanked on the wires, pulling the owner of the taser into her fist. He fell to the ground, but she screamed again as another taser blast hit her. This time she fell unconscious.
"Tara!" Angel shouted. The two men he was fighting had hold of his arms. He quickly pulled forward, smashing the two men into each other. Angel jumped and tackled one of the men who was starting to tie Tara's wrists together behind her back. He heard a scream and turned to see the twins struggling as two of the men dragged them toward a van. Angel threw the man he had tackled, sending him crashing into the remaining two who weren't holding the twins. He hurried over to Tara and stood between her and the men. He surveyed the situation and knew his chances of protecting Tara and getting the twins back were very slim. He wasn't sure what to do. But Lindsey chose for him.
"We got what we came for," Lindsey said to the others. "Let's go."
The men retreated to the van and Angel watched helplessly as Lindsey walked away, a smug smile spread across his face. He swore under his breath as the tail lights of the van retreated down the alley and around the corner. Then he lifted Tara in his arms and carried her back to the car in order to break the bad news to everyone else. Wolfram & Hart had won this round.
* * *
"You were supposed to bring the whole girl back, not just a few drops of her blood on some taser barbs," Lilah said in annoyance. They were standing outside the firm's science department, awaiting news on some test results.
"I think I did well considering," Lindsey said. "The twins were the priority anyway. Tara was just an extra."
"The senior partners were pretty clear about what they wanted," Lilah said. "And the twins aren't cooperating."
"What did you expect? They spent the night with Angel Investigations," Lindsey said. "We're the big bad lawyers now."
"The vampires probably didn't help either," she said. "Whose idea was that anyway?"
"Tactical Department. I think the guy's name was Terry," he replied. "He was terminated last night."
"Oh right, Terry," she said in realization. She knew the word 'terminated' meant more than just losing a job in their world. "Too bad. I kinda liked him."
Their conversation was interrupted when a man in a lab coat joined them. The name tag on his coat indicated he was J. Kellerman. Lindsey looked to him impatiently.
"Is it enough?" he asked. "Is that enough blood?"
"It's enough. Barely," Kellerman replied. "We should be okay as long as the first trial works."
"We'll get more if you need it," Lindsey said. Lilah shot him a look of disbelief. "I'll figure out a way."
Kellerman just stood there and Lilah looked to him. "Well, what are you waiting for? The senior partners consider this project of urgent importance."
He nodded his head and retreated back to the lab. The two of them turned and headed down the hall. Lindsey grumbled under his breath, "This better work."
