DISCLAIMER: I don't own Roswell, Buffy or Angel, but I do own…um…well, all the random soldiers…oh, and Deimon, sort of…maybe Khivar when he's being Kyden? I'm really reaching, aren't I? Fine, I don't own anything.
CATEGORY: Buffy/Angel/Roswell crossover.
PAIRINGS: M&M, R&F, A&I, O&S, M&L, Z&A.
RATING: PG – For all the shooting and death. LOL
SUMMARY: Sequel to "The Chosen". Takes place a year after the Pod Squad stepped through the portal onto Antar. The prophecy is over, but the war has just begun. The Pod Squad returns to Antar to fight Khivar and release the Lythian system from his reign of terror.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Yep, it's summer and all my writing skills seem to have gone on vacation, so expect mistakes, I'm sure they're there. Sorry 'bout that.
CHAPTER ONE
Michael winced as another explosion sounded in the distance, and the ground shook with its force. The war was still raging even after 12 years. He was tired of fighting.
It was exactly one year to the day since they'd stepped through the wormhole onto this godforsaken planet and it was only recently that they'd made any kind of headway. The underground was bigger than they'd expected, but still, a band of untrained rebels was no match for Khivar's army. There had been a lot of work waiting for them. There was also the added animosity between Zan's and Rath's followers. The fighting amongst the troops didn't help at all. But finally, after a year of yelling and fighting and planning, they were able to put it behind them and work together as a team.
That's where he was now. On a rescue mission. Yesterday's attack on the northern quadrant was devastating. Somehow, Khivar found out where their main base of operations was and his army descended upon them like a pack of wolves on an unsuspecting bunny. Half the soldiers were killed, including Liz and Zan. The other half was taken prisoner or left dying as a present from the enemy. Among the prisoners were Kyle, Faith, Ava and Serena. That was the mission: To rescue the rest of the "Saviours". That was the name the rebels gave them when they joined the fight. Michael, Maria, Rath, Faith, Alex, Isabel, Serena, Oz, Kyle, Max, Liz, Zan, and Ava were the leaders of the underground and the saviours of Antar. It was their job to strategise, plan and execute all the attacks against Khivar. The people appreciated and looked up to the Royal Four and their mates. It was the only thing they could really agree on.
"All clear," Oz's voice came over his com-link. After giving a brief reply, Michael turned to Rath and the three soldiers they'd brought with them and gave them the signal to move on.
Silently, they slipped through the castle corridors, pausing only to plant micro cameras in strategic places. Just because this was only a rescue mission didn't mean they couldn't be on the offensive. These cameras would help them track Khivar's movements.
'Michael? You there?' Maria called in his head. She was back at the eastern base, against her will, with a map of the palace, guiding them through. Michael had ordered her to stay put. He didn't want her out in the fray, too. It took the deaths of Liz and Zan for them to realise that they weren't invincible. They weren't the immortal saviours their people believed them to be. They were still only human. No longer did they all charge gallantly into the fight at the same time. Some had to be left behind as a second front. That's why Maria needed to stay back at the base to hold the fort there and keep an eye on the last remaining Antarian king. If Khivar got to Max, then it was all over.
'Yeah, are we getting closer?' Michael signalled for his soldiers to get back as two of Khivar's guards ran down the hall. As they passed them, Sergeants Haulle and Mekaille stepped out of the doorways they were hiding in, grabbed them, and snapped their necks, before dragging their limp bodies into an empty room.
'Okay, Alex says you're in the third corridor of the west wing…Ground floor?' She paused, presumably to confer with Alex. 'Yeah, so…take the next left. There should be a door to the dungeon stairway.'
'Got it. Where's Oz's team?'
'Um…' She turned to Alex, who was also back at the base, tracking their movements from the computers. Each of them had a microscopic homing device implanted in their arms. The signal relayed back to a laptop, where it was fed into a program Alex created. All the floor plans of pretty much everywhere was programmed into that computer, so they could be tracked and pinpointed anywhere in the capital city. From the signals sent back to the base, they were able to figure out that the prisoners, namely the four captured 'saviours' were in different ends of the dungeons, which was the reason for two teams.
'They're at the stairwell in the east wing. You guys should meet up somewhere in the middle. That's where the dungeons are.'
'Right. Thanks Maria.' He gave his soldiers the directions and followed them down the hall.
Another explosion sounded, closer this time. A rumble echoed off the walls as more of Khivar's inside guards ran out to help protect the palace. Good. The plan was working. The rebels attacked from the outside while Michael, Oz, Rath and Isabel infiltrated it and rescued their prisoners. And hey, if they managed to gain control of the castle, all the better.
"Rath? Anything yet?" Michael asked his brother quietly as they descended the stairs into the dungeons.
The corridor split into four directions and they were relying on Rath's connection with Faith to track them down. He closed his eyes and stood still, feeling for that familiar tingle in the back of his mind. Faith. Finally, he opened his eyes and pointed down the third path.
The corridors were dark and dingy, lit only by old-fashioned fire-torches, and carved out of stone, making it look more like a cave than the lowest level of a marble palace. Instead of the smooth, shiny floors found on the upper levels, there was only dirt and mud. By the smell of it, either the sewers passed straight through there, or the royal family who built it didn't see fit to give the prisoners proper plumbing.
Slowly, but confidently, Rath navigated the maze of dusty pathways and prison cells full of groaning offenders. The deeper they got into the maze, the faster Rath walked until he was at a full out run. The others followed close behind, mentally noting the twists and turns, since it was obvious that Rath wasn't doing it. Suddenly, he skidded to a halt in front of a large metal door. There was a small, bar-covered window near the top of the door.
"This it?" Michael asked unnecessarily, reaching up to look through the window as Lieutenant Schiff worked on opening the lock. "Oz, report."
"Sorry, Michael. Oz is too busy having a tearful reunion with Serena," a female voice said over the com-link.
"Izzy? Where are you guys, anyway?"
She paused. "Alex says we're pretty far from you. We're gonna try to let out the prisoners on this end and meet up with you guys after."
"Okay, we'll be waiting." He turned to the man working on the lock. "Schiff, how long 'til you pop this?"
"Just a few seconds, sir." As he finished speaking, there was a beeping sound as the electronic code was broken and the tumblers released.
"It's about time you guys showed up," Kyle complained as the door swung open. He patted Michael on the back in greeting as he stepped out into the cramped room that held him captive for 30 hours.
"You're lucky we even bothered," Michael said with a smirk.
Kyle put on a fake wounded look. "I'm hurt, really."
'Michael!' Maria shrieked worriedly, in his head. 'You have to hurry up! We just intercepted a radio transmission on Khivar's com-system. They know you're there!'
'What? How do they know?'
'Same way we did. They picked up on your radio signals.'
Michael cursed under his breath. "Come on, we have to move!" he ordered, pushing his soldiers forward in the direction he guessed the nearest exit was in. "Khivar's people know we're here. They're tracking our com signals, so radio silence from now on. Hustle!"
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"Oz! We have to head out now!" Isabel said urgently. "They know we're here." She bit her lip, looking through the bars at the rebels still imprisoned. Her gaze shifted to the soldier working on the locks. "How much longer?"
"A few seconds on this one, milady," he answered. "The decoder is faulty."
She sighed, running a hand through her hair. She really wished she had her powers right now. Damn the Antarian atmosphere. "Okay, hurry it up, then move to the next as fast as you can. We're not leaving anyone behind."
With a series of beeps, the lock popped open and the soldier moved on to the next one. The prisoners rushed out of their cells, thanking her profusely for rescuing them. She smiled graciously at them, even though inside she was a nervous wreck.
'Izzy, they're coming! Get out of there, now!' Alex yelled in her head.
'Alex, we're getting them out. There's only one more cell to go. It looks like all of ours were on this end.'
'But Isabel…'
'No, Alex we're not leaving anyone…' She trailed off as she heard the pounding of army boots echoing off the stonewalls of the dungeons. 'Oh crap.'
'Izzy? Isabel? What is it? Are you okay?'
"Private, how much longer?" Oz asked hurriedly.
"A minute at least," he said frustrated.
"Isabel, come on we have to go. There's no way…"
"No! We're not leaving anybody behind," she insisted.
"Please, princess, we are not worth it," a woman said from within the cell. Her cellmates nodded in solemn agreement. "You must leave us."
"No, I won't. The private will just have to work faster."
The footsteps grew louder as they neared them. Serena grabbed her arm and tried pulling her in the opposite direction. Isabel shrugged her off. "We'll just have to fight them," she said determinedly.
Oz sighed in defeat, knowing that it was hopeless, and moved to stand beside her. He turned to the Private picking the locks. "Hurry it up." He nodded briskly with a curt "Yes sir", not turning away from what he was doing.
Isabel, Serena, Oz, Ava and the other two soldiers raised their weapons as the shadows of the enemy appeared on the walls as they turned the corner. Isabel's finger curled around the trigger as the sounds of the enemies' panting became audible as they came into earshot.
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'Damn it, we're lost!' Michael thought as they rounded yet another corner in the maze.
'Spaceboy, I told you you were going the wrong way. You never listen! Hello! I have a map!"
'Yeah, yeah. Where do we go now?' Michael asked, annoyed.
'Turn right here.'
Michael jogged around the corner and stopped dead in his tracks as he was confronted by a row of guns. He immediately raised his hands in surrender.
"Whoa, whoa, Isabel, it's just us," he rushed, keeping his distance. He heard her sigh in relief as she dropped her arm to her side, re-holstering her gun. There was a beeping noise from behind her as the lock to the last cell opened.
"Michael, what are you doing here? You were supposed to be on the other side of the block."
"Baby bro here got lost," Rath said with a smirk. Michael glared at him. Traitor.
"How could he get lost? Maria has the map," Oz asked confused.
Michael scowled as he heard Maria's laughter in his head. Why did they all have to gang up on him? So he had a bad sense of direction. So sue him. It wasn't illegal.
"Excuse me, sirs, ma'ams," Private Khiernn interrupted, "Perhaps we should leave now? Before we get caught?"
Michael smirked. At least someone was on his side. He had to remember to promote him later.
'Okay, Spaceboy, just continue down the path you're on. Take the third right, then the second left. That should take you to a set of stairs. Go down them…"
'Down? Why?'
'It leads to an underground tunnel that comes out in the backyard of the palace. It's a secret passage, I guess so the king can get out if the palace got attacked. If you go up the stairs you end up in the King's bedroom.'
Following Maria's instructions, they made their way down the corridor, the other prisoners calling out to them for release.
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"Ma'am."
Kaylanna's head shot up as the voice interrupted her study of the map. She was checking out the layout of the palace grounds, for places where Khivar's troops could be hiding. Their part of the plan was going brilliantly. She could feel it. They were close to taking over the palace. She was sure of it. All she had to do was check for hidden trenches and weapons. She couldn't allow Khivar's army to catch them unawares when they stormed the castle.
"The enemy has called a retreat. They know that the saviours have entered the castle and…"
"They're going to re-capture their prisoners," she said in realisation. She cussed under her breath. "Okay, move forward. No mercy. Anyone you see heading back to the palace I want you to shoot, bomb, and stab, anything to keep them from returning. We can't let the others get captured. We don't know the condition of the captives, so we don't know how they would handle an attack now." She stood, looking him in the eye. "This is one battle we are going to win, Major."
"Yes, ma'am," he said, saluting her before hurrying out of the tent.
Pulling out a pair of binoculars, she strode out of the tent. It was set up on a hill just a few miles south of the battlefield; the perfect spot for watching the warriors at work. Adjusting the focus on her binoculars, she peered over the land. The Major was right. The battle was now even closer to the palace walls, only a few metres away. Some of Khivar's back-line had already started running back to the castle. She turned, trying to spot the snipers they'd placed on nearby rooftops. She smiled as she caught the glare of a gun pointed at the retreating soldiers. One by one, the runners dropped dead in their tracks, while others wildly searched for the source of the shots. Fortunately, the soldiers were shot by the snipers before their positions could be given away.
Suddenly, she felt a sharp pain. Her hands dropped to her stomach as she dropped to her knees in agony. Slowly, in shock, her eyes shifted down to her fingers. The dark red liquid oozed slowly out, draining her of warmth, of life.
Vaguely, she could hear people yelling and shooting, but her vision was blurry as her body made its slow descent to the cold, hard ground.
Then all went black.
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Isabel skidded to a stop in front of a rusty old metal door. It somehow seemed more opposing than the others. More condemning. It drew her closer, calling for her to open it and see what was inside.
"Isabel, what are you doing?" She didn't answer, still mesmerized by the door.
"Iz, come on, we have to move!" Rath exclaimed, latching onto her arm and trying to pull her forward.
"No, there's something here, I know it," she insisted, pulling away. "We have to open it."
"Iz, there's no time!" Serena said firmly. In the distance, they could hear the guards coming.
"No, no, my instincts tell me there's something here. Something we have to find. Private, unlock the door."
"But princess, there isn't enough time. There are five electronic locks on this thing and we only have two decoders, one of which is on the fritz. And even if we could get those open, there's still a manual lock and I wouldn't have a clue how to open it."
"You can't open manual locks, but you can decode electric ones?" she asked in disbelief.
"They're not used much anymore. It's no longer a part of our training," Lieutenant Schiff added.
Isabel growled in frustration and kicked the door. "Okay, I'll pick the manual lock, you get the others."
"Isabel, be practical…" Michael started.
She snorted, dropping to her knees in front of the lock and pulling out a hairpin. "Please. Coming from you, I'm insulted."
"This way, I can hear them!" they heard a voice call from down the hall, followed by the pounding of army boots on the cold, hard floor.
They all looked frantically at each other, then back at Isabel, who was diligently working on the lock, refusing to budge.
Michael turned to the thirty odd rebels they'd just rescued, and gave them the directions to the escape tunnel, ordering them to continue without them. They protested, but finally gave in to the orders from their General.
"Isabel, stand back. I'm gonna blast it off," Michael said as soon as they were out of earshot, decisively raising his hands in front of him.
"Michael, we don't have our powers here."
"We don't." He smirked, his eyes flashing red as he drew on the power deep within himself and fired an energy blast directly at the group of locks. There was a shower of sparks as the electronic keypads shorted out. "But Deimon does."
The door groaned as its old rusted hinges were forced to turn, and after years of settling in the same spot, it was moved. It swung open slowly and ominously, inch by inch revealing a dark, windowless room that appeared to have not seen the light of day in ages. The princess of Antar stepped forward looking around expectantly.
"It's empty," she said, disappointed. Oz followed close behind her and wrinkled his nose.
"And it smells…" he frowned, sniffing the air. "Someone's here." His green eyes scanned the dark room, taking in the shapes. Especially that shaking lump in the corner. "Over there," he said, gesturing to it.
Isabel slowly walked over to it. "It's okay…we're not gonna hurt you," she whispered, reaching out her hand. The figure shrank away from her, shaking even more. "We only want to help." The figure lifted its head. Isabel gasped and stepped away, bringing her hand to her mouth.
From the shape of her face and her features, Isabel could only guess that it was a woman. There was a long jagged scar running down her face, delicate features marred by the vicious marking. She was covered in a dark, toxic-smelling goo from head to toe. Her clothes were torn and battered and she was barefooted. Her brown eyes darted nervously from side to side like a mouse caught between three ferocious cats. Her long hair stuck to various once-open wounds on her forehead, mingling within the scabs and becoming one with the skin. Isabel forced down her disgust and reached out to her once again, knowing that somehow she was important to all this. She looked from her eyes to her hand repeatedly, before finally grasping the proffered hand and pulling herself up.
Suddenly, the sound of gunshots could be heard. They were close, just a few doors down. Isabel pulled her to the entrance and peeped through the doorway. Khivar's men had finally caught up with them, armed and ready to kill on sight. Rath, Faith, Michael, Kyle, Oz, Serena, Schiff and Khiernn were working hard on holding them back. Ava was crouched in the doorway opposite, fiddling with a box. She flicked one last switch and grinned in triumph as the digits "10" appeared on the front in red and immediately started counting down.
"Down!" she yelled, as she tossed it over their heads. It landed right in front of Khivar's minions. Eight rebel leaders and two soldiers ducked and covered their heads as the digits on the box turned to "00" and the bomb exploded, taking 15 of Khivar's men with it.
They spared each other but one glance, before taking off down the tunnel. They were home free.
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Well? What'd ya think? How'd you like it?