"Let me hit him with another fireball!" Willow cried in Buffy's head.
"No Wills, that's okay." Buffy said as she ran as fast as her legs would carry her and slid over the hood of a car, Dukes of Hazzard style.
"Are you absolutely sure?" Willow asked, somewhat afraid for her friend.
"Yeah. I think the first one really slowed him down." Buffy replied, glancing over her shoulder.
The car she slid across flipped backwards and tumbled as Bacchus followed her quickly, albeit limping and smoking to the last little rays of the sun hitting his skin. He roared in rage as his huge fangs were bared for the entire world to see.
"Of course if this is him slowed down, I never want to see him sped up." Buffy replied with her thoughts.
"Let me teleport you out of there!" Willow's voice said again.
"No dice. This has to be played out perfectly. If I just fade out, he won't follow me to the construction site. He doesn't do that, and then Spike's plan won't work. And he just burns my house down later." Buffy replied as she ran by a mail box that Bacchus just trampled as he pursued.
"What do I do though? I feel helpless." Willow's voice came again.
"You and Spike get to the site. I'll be there soon." Buffy said to her friend.
"You sure?" Willow asked.
"Yeah. Right as soon as I'm done playing Frogger with this guy." Buffy smirked.
"Say what?" Willow asked.
Buffy darted into Main Street and Bacchus followed. Buffy paused in the middle of the street and turned to her pursuer. She sent her most potent kick at the demon, stopping him dead in the street, but doing very little harm to him.
"I'll drink you slowly to prolong your agony." Bacchus snarled.
"And I'll be sure to laugh when that bus hits you." Buffy smiled as she flipped backwards.
"Bus?" Bacchus asked, as he turned and saw the speeding vehicle mere inches from his face, "Well son of a—"
Bacchus was struck hard and went down, the bus running over his body, breaking an arm, crushing in his ribs, and generally making his life a living hell for the moment. And true to her word, Buffy did laugh.
"I bet they didn't have those in ancient Greece." Buffy remarked before wistfully looking to the sky, "But this just makes me wonder, where do I go from here?"
"To Hell." Bacchus said in pain as he rose. His ribs began to fill back out and he straightened his arm to where it was functional again.
Buffy looked at the demon and sighed.
"I'll tell you what I tell every other vamp that says that to me: save me a seat." Buffy quipped.
"I'll have that carved on your tombstone, after I take up the speeding issues with the local politicians." Bacchus growled.
"Good luck. If experience tells me anything it's that politicians are worse than the demons in this town." Buffy replied, "So we going to get past the threatening stage and have you actually do something?"
"In…a moment." Bacchus said, still smoldering a bit from Willow's magick missile and from the sun. Instants later, the sun finally set and the smoldering stopped. Bacchus stood up straight and popped his neck with a grin, "Much better. Now I believe I was chasing you?"
"Yep and getting flattened like a coyote." Buffy said as she began to turn and run.
"Your reference is lost on me." Bacchus said, beginning to limp after her.
"Meep meep." Buffy replied.
"Okay, I got one. Jennifer Lopez or Alyson Hannigan?" Xander asked.
"Lopez, definitely Lopez. She's hotter." J answered.
"No way dude! Alyson Hannigan is 'da bomb!" Xander replied, "Didn't you watch American Pie?"
"She's not as hot as Lopez." J said again.
"Well maybe not in your world, but to me she's way more desirable. Alyson's like someone you can hang out with and be friends with in addition to having that girl next door thing going on. Lopez is just a skank. She made a big deal out of staying in the same room Puff Daddy did. Insecure much?" Xander replied.
"I see your point, but I can just neuralize Lopez's memory to the point where she wasn't a bitch." J answered.
"Good point. But I'm still going with Alyson. Your turn." Xander said.
"My turn? Okay, since you like American Pie so much, Shannon Elizabeth or…umm Sarah Michelle Gellar." J said.
"Okay, let me think here." Xander said, "On one hand Buffy says that SMG's nose is big, but then again I think Buff just didn't like Cruel Intentions because Ryan Phillipe died. But I've dated a girl who had a body like Shannon, so I'm going to go with her. Okay, the very hot and skanky Christine Aguilera or someone down to earth and sexy like say…Amber Benson?"
"Who's Amber Benson?" J asked.
"She's an actress who's been in a lot of indie movies. I told Tara that she kind of looks like her, but she didn't believe me." Xander sighed.
"Amber." K answered making J and Xander's heads turn to him.
K just looked at them both.
"What?" K asked.
The three men were suddenly startled by a loud roar. They looked out the back window and saw Buffy running straight for them with Bacchus right on her tail.
"Holy crap!" Xander said, "That guy DOES look like Tim Curry in Legend!"
"Let's go to work." K said, grabbing his deatomizer as he and J exited the car.
"Hey wait up!" Xander said struggling to get out as well.
Buffy saw her allies up ahead and pumped her legs more furiously, though she was rapidly running out of breath. Bacchus was speeding up too. He had healed nearly completely now, meaning she was in trouble. She just forgot about the roars behind her, the occasional feel of a hand on her hair blowing in the wind, and the fact that Willow and Spike were teleporting in front of her. Wait a minute.
Willow smiled, her eyes already ebon as black lightning spiraled out and slammed into Bacchus throwing him back. He was back up instantly flipping forward to avoid her new strikes. Spike grabbed Buffy and helped her along.
"How'd it go?" Spike asked.
"Bad." Buffy replied.
"Want me to kick his ass?" Spike asked.
Buffy looked at him as if he had grown another head.
"My attempt at being funny didn't work did it?" he asked.
"Failed miserably." Buffy replied again.
The Predator stood up inside the bowels of the construction site. He heard thunder. Harmony was at his side.
"What is that?" Harmony asked.
The Predator didn't reply. He just extended his staff.
Bacchus deftly avoided Willow's strikes, even when she tried to focus on where he would be rather than firing directly at him. Her reactions just weren't quick enough. She felt the rage boiling up in her, but she repressed it. She may not be hitting him, but she was keeping him from attacking Buffy or the others and that was the important thing.
However, now Bacchus was looking right at her as she was tiring from all those lightning blasts fired in just a few seconds of one another. Bacchus leapt for her and slammed into an invisible field. He looked at her puzzled.
"I put that up when I noticed I couldn't hit you. Before you say anything, yes I am THAT damn good." Willow smirked as Bacchus eyed her, mere inches away, "Also can you say diversion?"
Bacchus looked to his side and was suddenly filled full of holes. J and K fired on him, deatomizers at half power. The vampire roared and charged them. Willow nailed him with a blast of lightning sending him, tumbling forward. Bacchus rose again and shot a dirty glare to Willow, before being fired on again by the Men in Black.
"Damn K! This guy is absorbing our shots man!" J shouted.
"I had noticed." K replied, deadpan, "Bring them up a level."
J lowered his weapon and began to work with it as K kept firing.
"Level seven!" J said as he raised his deatomizer. K then lowered his to adjust its setting as J fired. K quickly raised it and together, the two partners fired.
The only problem was that by now Bacchus had adjusted himself. He sidestepped each blast they sent at him, and even avoided Willow's lightning when he heard the air begin to sizzle and the heat raise ever so slightly.
"Damn!" Willow said as he began to avoid her blasts, without even looking at her, "I'm going to have to try something else. Maybe freeze his motor functions. Okay, concentrate."
Vampire hearing picked up her words and instantly Bacchus changed his position, making the MIB shots change their trajectory. Bacchus grinned as he avoided each and every shot. Said shots then collided with Willow's barrier.
"Hey! Watch where you're shooting! On your side!" Willow shouted, her concentration broken.
She also feared her barrier wouldn't last against the weapons that when at their highest level could incinerate someone. She upped the power of her barrier and sighed that their plan had been disrupted.
Bacchus laughed as he began to walk forward, avoiding each and every shot, totally intent on killing both Men in Black. He knew that they would have to keep firing or he would kill them even sooner. That also kept the witch off his back because her concentration was broken. The Slayer and her vampire were also quite useless at the moment. If they walked into a firefight of this magnitude, then they would be destroyed. That left only…
"Hey Tim!" Xander said as he held his Noisy Cricket aloft.
Bacchus looked to the idiot human as he kept avoiding shots from the Men in Black. He let a small chuckle loose when he saw that the human held such a puny weapon in his hand.
"Go ahead, punk. Make my day." Xander smirked as he fired.
Bacchus went flying back into the construction site, with a rather large gaping wound in his chest. Xander likewise went back, flying into the trunk of the MIB car. With a dull thud, he slid down the trunk to the pavement.
"Ow. Ow. OW!" he gritted through his teeth.
"Xander!" Buffy said running up with Spike in tow, "Are you alright?"
"Peachy." Xander groaned in pain.
"Helluva kick on that thing." Spike remarked.
"Yeah. Tell me about it." Xander said getting up, "Also remind me to thank Uncle Harry for telling me all those stories about him being a cop in back in the day. Really helped me with the shooting of the gun. And here comes the passing out."
Buffy caught her friend before he hit the ground and managed to keep him awake.
Willow and the Men in Black walked up.
"Wow. Xander comes through again." Willow smiled, "I think he's earned a lesbian pillow fight."
Everyone looked at her. Especially Xander.
"What? I'm just saying is all." Willow said.
"Think that did it?" J asked, changing the subject.
"I'd think so." K replied.
"How can you be sure?" Buffy asked.
K merely pointed to the site.
"Oh." Buffy replied.
Bacchus stood slowly, the hole in him sealing up in mere seconds. He growled and looked up the hill at the idiots who dared to challenge him. He would move up and snap al their necks. Except the Slayer. He would torture her and make her beg before finally draining her of her essence. She would pay most dearly. Then Bacchus paused. He heard a heartbeat. A strong heartbeat. Bacchus turned and actually looked up at the creature behind him.
The Predator regarded the creature in front of him with a quizzical cock of his head and then looked up the hill.
"Slay-Er!" the Predator roared.
Bacchus looked at the Predator's gaze at his foe. HIS Slayer. He didn't like that look. He had seen it so many times before. From Vikings, from Apache, from Slayers. It was a look that lusted for the kill. Bacchus shoved the Predator back with one hand.
"She's mine!" Bacchus roared, with an almost insane air.
The Predator didn't understand the unworthy creature's words and merely tried to walk past him to more worthy prey. Bacchus shoved him back again. The Predator looked at the creature and growled in warning to not do that again. Bacchus hissed back.
The Predator strode forward again only to be thrown back by the unworthy vampire. The Predator growled and stood up. It may be an unworthy kill, but NO ONE dared treat a Hunt Master that way. NO ONE!
The Predator jammed its staff right through Bacchus's mid section. Bacchus looked down and grinned before backhanding the alien and making him stumble back. The Predator roared and ran forward, striking Bacchus with a powerful right hand that made the demon stagger backwards. With a sickening jerk, his staff was pulled from Bacchus and slammed into the demon's head making it stagger again. The Predator twirled its staff and swung again. This time he connected with air and was puzzled.
He then went flying through the air and hit the base of the hill with a thud. Bacchus laughed and strode forwards towards the Predator.
"You know what? I'm going to tear you apart so those idiots can see what they're up against. To make their blood run cold." Bacchus laughed, "You'll be an example. Now be a good dog and lie still while I kill you."
The staff went through Bacchus's head. The vampire staggered backwards and began wrenching the metal staff from his head.
"Oh." Bacchus said pulling it out, the hole sealing up, "So that's how it's going to be."
"Shouldn't we jump in?" Spike asked, watching the battle and feeling more than his fair share of bloodlust.
"Nope. We stay out of it for now." K added, "We just kick them back into play if they try to get out."
The Predator tackled Bacchus and slammed him into the concrete wall of the half constructed building. The wall cracked and spider-webbed. Bacchus lifted the Predator and slammed him into the wall likewise, cracking and weakening it more. The Predator hissed its four pronged mouth opening and dripping saliva. Bacchus growled likewise and began to hammer the Predator's head with vampire celerity.
The Predator's head shook back and forth reeling from the blows. Fluorescent blood splattered on the wall as each blow brought more and more to the surface. The Predator stood there dazed and shaky as Bacchus backed up and popped his knuckles.
"Time to end this charade." Bacchus said as he sent his fist forward as fast as he could.
The Predator rolled to the side and extended his claws. He sent them into Bacchus's back and pushed them upwards as Bacchus's hand sank into the concrete, creating quite the hole. Bacchus groaned in pain as the Predator warbled and pushed the claws deeper.
"Good dog." It said as it twisted the claws.
Bacchus threw his head back violently, and with a powerful headbutt sent the Predator backing away in pain. He then grunted and produced his hand from the concrete. He turned and looked at the Predator.
"You're beginning to bore me." Bacchus growled, before a small bit of concrete hit his shoulder. He looked up, puzzled, as a larger bit hit his face.
Then the wall collapsed on him.
"DAMN!" Xander yelled, watching the spectacle, "That's mystic orgasm on the ceiling level cool!"
"And that's as cool as it gets!" Willow said excitedly.
"Um." J said nervously as the Predator looked at them and began to walk for the hill.
It turned when it heard the rubble move. Bacchus erupted from it a moment later, in a huge leap that carried him to the second story of the building. Standing he reached to his side and produced Xena's chakram. With a roar of rage, he threw it at the Predator with all of his might.
It sparked when it hit the razor disk in mid-air. The chakram returned to Bacchus's hand, the razor disk to the Predator's. Bacchus smiled and looked to his side. There was a large steel girder sitting there. He strode to it and effortlessly lifted it. It was then launched at the Predator like a missile. The Predator ducked and rolled as the girder slammed into the ground like a giant lawn dart. As he came back to his feet, he threw a razor disk. Then another. Then another.
Bacchus's eyes went wide as the weapons approached. He evaded one, and then the second nicked his side. The third one embedded itself right into his chest. Then the Predator chortled as the other two razor disks entered his back on the return path. Bacchus fell forward to the ground below. The Predator then regarded the girder in the ground.
Bacchus managed to get to his feet a few moments later. He growled and pulled the razor disks from his body and threw them to the ground. He looked in the direction of the Predator and was struck in the face with a loud clang and sent flying backwards through another concrete wall into the building. The Predator noted that the steel girder made an excellent makeshift club. He preferred his staff though. Tossing the girder to the ground, he lifted his staff and followed the now considerably worthy creature through the hole it had made.
Years of hunting made, seeing in the darkness easy. He had killed Crites, Xenomorphs, and the strange creatures from the eclipsed world in total darkness before. This would be no different. The only thing that was a factor was that this creature for all intents and purposes was almost invisible to his normal spectrum of vision. He had only simple shapes and patterns to work with. But that mattered little. He had other senses to help counter this.
He heard the sound of footsteps as he walked through the belly of this building. Very faint, but they were there. But he couldn't locate them. That was odd. Had he known the full capabilities of his foe, he may have known to look up on the ceiling where the vampire crawled. But alas, he did not.
Bacchus leapt down at him with not even the slightest sound. The Predator fought to stay out of a powerful headlock. He truly did, but a slash to the face had made the Predator's priorities change. He felt his face, and in that simple, instinctual move, Bacchus's hands were around his neck. Powerful legs carried them upwards, slamming the Predator's head into the ceiling high above the floor, some twenty feet or more. Bacchus clung to it after hitting, letting the Predator fall to the ground. Bacchus laughed as the Predator slammed into the floor, his staff leaving his hand.
"Bombs away." Bacchus said letting go.
The Predator coughed up blood when Bacchus slammed into his chest with both feet. Bacchus laughed and then leapt to the ceiling again and repeated the motion. More blood was coughed up and a rib broke in the third and fourth attacks respectively. Bacchus leapt up to the ceiling and let go for a fifth time. But this time the Predator's hand clutched his staff.
Bacchus roared in pain as he was impaled on the weapon. The Predator rose, holding the vampire on the staff. It growled and Bacchus could swear it almost chuckled.
"Bombs…away" it growled before slinging Bacchus off of the staff and into a wall with a thud. Twirling its staff, the Predator walked forward again.
Bacchus rose and examined a pipe on the wall. He grinned and gripped it hard as the Predator was near enough to strike. With a shrug, the pipe broke and hot steam shot out scalding the Predator. Shrieking in pain, it stepped backwards, holding its eyes with one hand. Bacchus rushed forward through the steam, healing from the burns it inflicted near instantly. Bacchus then tackled the Predator into a wall hard. Then he did it through another wall. Then he put the Predator on his shoulders and leapt into the air, slamming the Predator into the ceiling again, before bring it down into a backbreaker. Bacchus was confident he heard something break as he bent the alien over his knee. Then gripping a limp arm it tossed the Predator into and through another wall.
The Predator got up, albeit it very slowly. It got a kick to the face that made it fall backwards. It staggered up again, getting another kick to its face. A backhand followed. Then another from the other hand. Bacchus gripped his neck and headbutted him fiercely. He then shoved the Predator into a wall. The Predator gathered his strength and tried to rush Bacchus, only to get a clothesline. Bacchus chuckled as he stomped the alien's chest, listening to another bone break.
"Pathetic." Bacchus grinned as another foot stomped the Predator's chest, "Absolutely pathetic."
"Yeah, your sense of fashion is!" Harmony roared as she leaped on Bacchus's back.
She was thrown backwards like a rag doll.
"And you are?" Bacchus asked.
"The Big Bad?" Harmony replied, unsure and very terrified.
Bacchus strode forward intent on making this idiot suffer for daring to even touching him. The Predator stood behind him. He rushed forward and impaled Bacchus on his staff and ran forward, lifting him and slamming him through a wall and back to the outside. He'd slap Harmony around later for trying to save him.
Bacchus roared and pulled himself down the staff angrily slashing the face of the Predator. It dropped the staff and Bacchus landed on his feet. The Predator stood shakily, his adrenalin burst gone. Bacchus slashed his face again. The Predator struck out and slashed him with his blades. Bacchus growled and kneed the Predator between the legs. The Predator struck out again and connected with air. Not because of Bacchus's celerity this time, but because he was weakened to an incredible degree.
Bacchus merely walked behind the alien hunter and looked to a fuse box not far away. Nodding with a smile, Bacchus grabbed the Predator's dreadlocks and threw him into it. Then with a shrug he pulled the staff from his body and threw it at the Predator like a javelin. Electricity arced as the staff went through the Predator and into the fuse box.
The Predator roared in pain and knew in his heart, this was his last stand. He couldn't fend off this enemy. He was going to die. Yes, but he would with honor. He pulled himself off of the fuse box with a grunt and sank to his knees. Slowly, he began to pull the staff from his body, though not with the same ease as Bacchus had. Stained with both red and glowing blood, the staff went to the ground. The Predator looked up and saw Bacchus striding forward with an evil grin on his face. The wounded eyes of the Predator then fell to his left arm.
He flipped the top of the gauntlet on his forearm and looked at the computer screen on it. A claw came down on a button. Then another. If he wasn't going to win this battle, then no one would. There was just one last digit to push. The Predator's right hand descended towards it, when he was kicked in the face again by Bacchus.
Bacchus's powerful hand gripped the left arm of the Predator and smiled. He had this creature at his mercy, and he wasn't going to let that go to waste. He wrenched and pulled. He smiled when the arm dislocated and pulled harder. The Predator tried to keep the pain in, but eventually let a roar escape. He felt sinew tear. He felt muscle stretch. He felt veins and arteries break and tear.
He cried like a wounded animal as Bacchus tore the arm from his body and blood sprayed everywhere. The Predator fell in a heap and closed its eyes in pain. Bacchus meanwhile licked at the stump of the left arm. He scowled.
"Not a very good year." Bacchus said tossing the arm over his back, "It's over. Now get out of my sight."
Bacchus kicked the Predator into the air, sending him flying. The Predator slammed into a steel support beam and hit the ground in a heap.
Bacchus laughed wildly at the sight.
"Hey!" a voice from behind called out.
Bacchus looked up the hill behind him. Buffy stood there, wielding her stake. Spike at her side, in full game face and cockiest sneer. Willow glowed and radiated magick. Xander stood by her, acting like his Great Uncle Harry Callahan again. The Men in Black stood by them in silhouette, breaking out the big guns.
"This isn't over yet." Buffy stated.
"I wouldn't have it any other way." Bacchus grinned.