Chapter 6
The time had come to lay their friends to rest. Connor came ahead of them to help see that everything was set up. He stood with the rest of the group as the three made their way into the midst of the group. Angel carried Wesley in his arms while Spike carried Gunn, Illyria followed behind as if she were a puppy following its master. There was dead silence as the trio made there way into the midst of the group. Two large wooden pyres stood in the clearing awaiting the bodies of the slain. Angel and Spike placed the bodies of their fallen comrades a top their respecting resting places and back away. The current leader of the gang stepped forward holding two torches.
He walked first to the group that had once been Gunn's family. His crew, the people that he has lived with, fought for, loved. Anne walked forward, removing a lighter from her pocket, and light the torch. The man turned and walked to the motley crew that was the remains of the Fang Gang. Spike drew his lighter and lit it before handing it to Illyria to light the torch. She did as she had seen Anne do, holding the flame to the torch until it was burning with orange flames, only then withdrawing her hand and passing the lighter back to Spike.
Silence filled the air, not a single breath to be heard. Slowly the gentlemen walked away from the groups, placing himself in between the two pyres.
"You fought, you loved, and you gave all. For this we bid you peace."
He placed the torches at his feet and backed away as the flames began to catch. Twin fires erupted and roared high into the midnight sky almost instantly.
Connor tried his best not to cry. Not to show how painful he found this. It was the biggest reminder of all the painful memories he didn't want to remember. All of the mean things that he had done to his father and his friends. There was no stopping the tears. He wept with abandon.
Spike had not known them but for a short time, and still this was one of the most painful days of all his 150 years. He could only think of a few others that were more painful. He refrained his tears, but his heart broke.
Angel had seen, had caused so much death in his time, but this was nearly more than he could bear. He had sent them to their deaths. Two silent tears made streaks down his cheeks.
It started first with a single tear rolling down her cheek. One single drop turned to a torrent of scalding hot tears. The pain that she had was feeling overwhelmed Illyria. Every memory of Fred's rushed through her mind filling her with conflicting emotions, love, happiness, joy, and triumph battling in her heart and mind against the pain and grief that filled her. Never in all of her thousands of years as a God has see experienced anything like this. Power, envy, malice, rage she had known, but love, pain, and grief had been foreign to her until she had been brought back to inhabit this human form. She collapsed to the ground amidst her raging emotions. Rage began to build.
"How dare they take him from me! How dare they think they can challenge the mighty Illyria, God-King of the primordium! Shaper of things!"
She let out a scream that could have deafened an average person. She waved her hand and a portal opened to a darken wasteland. The only thing to be seen was a ring of fire and three half human half animal creatures sitting in its midst. Each of the beings had the torso and head of a human a top the body of an animal. They looked like mythical creatures from a time long past. They sat facing one another paying no mind to what was going on outside the ring that sat in. Illyria rose from her place on the ground and entered the portal, Angel and Spike quick to follow. "You would dare to take him away from me. It is because of you that I have lost the one and only thing that I have ever known love for. You will die swiftly for your actions against me." It was only then that the three creatures stood and took their places side by side facing Angel, Illyria, and Spike. With only the fire to separate them.
Rage could be seen boiling in her cool blue eyes. She raised her hand again and time froze. Even the flames of the fire stopped their dancing and flickering. The only things that remained animated was Angel, Spike, and herself. She turned to them. "These are the enemies that you have been fighting so valiantly against. The ones that you fought from the belly of, the Wolf, the Ram, and the Hart! Choose the one you wish to slay. Time will return to its normal order just as the sword meets their necks, so that they may feel the wrath I have for them."
"Pet I hate to be the one to bring this up, but we have no swords." Spike was slightly weirded out. He was glad to come kill the big bad, but she could have at least let them find weapons to do it with first.
Angel just stood watching, wondering, how did she still have this much power? Just a few hours before she hadn't even had the will to mend her own clothing. Had Fred's emotions given her the strength and ability to do these things at her whim or had that toy of Wesley never really worked? What was happening? Yet he did not question it out loud. For whatever reason they were standing there about to kill the three things that had taken so much from him. His only true family he had ever had. The only people who had ever loved him despite his pitfalls. Vengeance would be his, no matter how he got there in the first place.
Another wave of Illyria's hand and gleaming silver swords appeared in each of their hands.
"No need to tell me twice. I am taking the ponce on the end here." Spike stepped forward to take his place in front of the Hart. Illyria took her position in front of the Ram, leaving Angel the Wolf.
To those still standing watch over the pyres of their friends, they could see all that was happening threw the portal. Anne found it rather interesting the places each of them took. The wolf, a beast of cunning intelligence, it is a quality that has been a part of Angel for as long as she has known him. The ram, even it astrological sign is know for fiery tempers, something that no one in that group was likely to forget that Illyria was full of. The hart, its name often brings to mind thoughts of love and emotions. Though she herself didn't know Spike, the short conversation she had had with him this afternoon told her it was a description that fit him well.
Standing face to face with some of the oldest evil on earth, younger only to the First and Illyria herself, they prepared to fight a fight that would be one sided at best. Each poised their blades to swing.
Connor stood and watched with amazement. Illyria was a force to be reckoned with.
"Now," Illyria yelled. Time came alive at the same moment they swung. Before the three had a chance to react, their heads rolled to the ground as their bodies toppled over.
"They have paid for their crimes." Illyria lead the way back threw the portal, back to a stunned and amazing group of on lookers. The fires had burned to nothing more than embers while they had taken care of the evil that had taken them.
Angel stood between the two piles of ash. "My friends, I have kept my word. We have seen that your deaths were not in vain." Without another word the four turned and left.
The time has come for them to move forward. To move on and let the pain be but a memory.
The End
The time had come to lay their friends to rest. Connor came ahead of them to help see that everything was set up. He stood with the rest of the group as the three made their way into the midst of the group. Angel carried Wesley in his arms while Spike carried Gunn, Illyria followed behind as if she were a puppy following its master. There was dead silence as the trio made there way into the midst of the group. Two large wooden pyres stood in the clearing awaiting the bodies of the slain. Angel and Spike placed the bodies of their fallen comrades a top their respecting resting places and back away. The current leader of the gang stepped forward holding two torches.
He walked first to the group that had once been Gunn's family. His crew, the people that he has lived with, fought for, loved. Anne walked forward, removing a lighter from her pocket, and light the torch. The man turned and walked to the motley crew that was the remains of the Fang Gang. Spike drew his lighter and lit it before handing it to Illyria to light the torch. She did as she had seen Anne do, holding the flame to the torch until it was burning with orange flames, only then withdrawing her hand and passing the lighter back to Spike.
Silence filled the air, not a single breath to be heard. Slowly the gentlemen walked away from the groups, placing himself in between the two pyres.
"You fought, you loved, and you gave all. For this we bid you peace."
He placed the torches at his feet and backed away as the flames began to catch. Twin fires erupted and roared high into the midnight sky almost instantly.
Connor tried his best not to cry. Not to show how painful he found this. It was the biggest reminder of all the painful memories he didn't want to remember. All of the mean things that he had done to his father and his friends. There was no stopping the tears. He wept with abandon.
Spike had not known them but for a short time, and still this was one of the most painful days of all his 150 years. He could only think of a few others that were more painful. He refrained his tears, but his heart broke.
Angel had seen, had caused so much death in his time, but this was nearly more than he could bear. He had sent them to their deaths. Two silent tears made streaks down his cheeks.
It started first with a single tear rolling down her cheek. One single drop turned to a torrent of scalding hot tears. The pain that she had was feeling overwhelmed Illyria. Every memory of Fred's rushed through her mind filling her with conflicting emotions, love, happiness, joy, and triumph battling in her heart and mind against the pain and grief that filled her. Never in all of her thousands of years as a God has see experienced anything like this. Power, envy, malice, rage she had known, but love, pain, and grief had been foreign to her until she had been brought back to inhabit this human form. She collapsed to the ground amidst her raging emotions. Rage began to build.
"How dare they take him from me! How dare they think they can challenge the mighty Illyria, God-King of the primordium! Shaper of things!"
She let out a scream that could have deafened an average person. She waved her hand and a portal opened to a darken wasteland. The only thing to be seen was a ring of fire and three half human half animal creatures sitting in its midst. Each of the beings had the torso and head of a human a top the body of an animal. They looked like mythical creatures from a time long past. They sat facing one another paying no mind to what was going on outside the ring that sat in. Illyria rose from her place on the ground and entered the portal, Angel and Spike quick to follow. "You would dare to take him away from me. It is because of you that I have lost the one and only thing that I have ever known love for. You will die swiftly for your actions against me." It was only then that the three creatures stood and took their places side by side facing Angel, Illyria, and Spike. With only the fire to separate them.
Rage could be seen boiling in her cool blue eyes. She raised her hand again and time froze. Even the flames of the fire stopped their dancing and flickering. The only things that remained animated was Angel, Spike, and herself. She turned to them. "These are the enemies that you have been fighting so valiantly against. The ones that you fought from the belly of, the Wolf, the Ram, and the Hart! Choose the one you wish to slay. Time will return to its normal order just as the sword meets their necks, so that they may feel the wrath I have for them."
"Pet I hate to be the one to bring this up, but we have no swords." Spike was slightly weirded out. He was glad to come kill the big bad, but she could have at least let them find weapons to do it with first.
Angel just stood watching, wondering, how did she still have this much power? Just a few hours before she hadn't even had the will to mend her own clothing. Had Fred's emotions given her the strength and ability to do these things at her whim or had that toy of Wesley never really worked? What was happening? Yet he did not question it out loud. For whatever reason they were standing there about to kill the three things that had taken so much from him. His only true family he had ever had. The only people who had ever loved him despite his pitfalls. Vengeance would be his, no matter how he got there in the first place.
Another wave of Illyria's hand and gleaming silver swords appeared in each of their hands.
"No need to tell me twice. I am taking the ponce on the end here." Spike stepped forward to take his place in front of the Hart. Illyria took her position in front of the Ram, leaving Angel the Wolf.
To those still standing watch over the pyres of their friends, they could see all that was happening threw the portal. Anne found it rather interesting the places each of them took. The wolf, a beast of cunning intelligence, it is a quality that has been a part of Angel for as long as she has known him. The ram, even it astrological sign is know for fiery tempers, something that no one in that group was likely to forget that Illyria was full of. The hart, its name often brings to mind thoughts of love and emotions. Though she herself didn't know Spike, the short conversation she had had with him this afternoon told her it was a description that fit him well.
Standing face to face with some of the oldest evil on earth, younger only to the First and Illyria herself, they prepared to fight a fight that would be one sided at best. Each poised their blades to swing.
Connor stood and watched with amazement. Illyria was a force to be reckoned with.
"Now," Illyria yelled. Time came alive at the same moment they swung. Before the three had a chance to react, their heads rolled to the ground as their bodies toppled over.
"They have paid for their crimes." Illyria lead the way back threw the portal, back to a stunned and amazing group of on lookers. The fires had burned to nothing more than embers while they had taken care of the evil that had taken them.
Angel stood between the two piles of ash. "My friends, I have kept my word. We have seen that your deaths were not in vain." Without another word the four turned and left.
The time has come for them to move forward. To move on and let the pain be but a memory.
The End