Angel Season Six:
Episode 6.01 – Survival
Rain pelted down upon the city of Los Angeles as a lone figure, dressed in soaked black shirt, trousers and a long black coat, quickly made his way up the alley behind the Hyperion hotel. When he reached the chain-linked fence, he stopped. Firmly gripping the sword in his hand, he looked around for signs of anyone else.
"Boo." Spike said as he stepped out of the shadows.
"Anyone else?" Angel asked as he examined the platinum-blonde haired vampire. Like Angel, Spike was soaked with rainwater.
"Not so far." Spike replied. He looked further up the alley nervously before speaking again. "You feel the heat?" He asked Angel.
Angel nodded. "It's coming."
"Finally got ourselves a decent brawl then."
"That's one way of putting it." Angel replied sarcastically as they both saw someone running up the alley towards them.
"Damn! How did I know the fang boys would pull through?" Gunn shouted as he drew closer to Angel and Spike, his homemade battle-axe in hand. The pair noticed the sever wounds he had suffered, blood stained his visible skin and clothing, his movement and speech became weaker. "You're lucky we're on the same side, dogs, 'cause I was on fire tonight." Gunn continued. "My game was tight."
"You're supposed to wear the red stuff on the inside, Charlie boy." Spike said grimly as he helped Gunn over to box where he could sit for a while.
"Any word on Wes?" Gun asked as he examined his wounds.
Illyria landed behind Angel, having jumped down from the chain-link fence and startles the trio. "Wesley's dead." She says, her voice betraying a little emotion.
This news shocked the others. Both Angel and Spike hung their heads to hide the anguish that is visible on their faces. Tears began to pour from Gunn's eyes, mixing with the blood on his face.
"I'm feeling grief for him." Illyria continues as the sounds of a vast amount of demons rapidly approaching them fills the alley. "I can't seem to control it. I wish to do more violence."
"Well, wishes just happen to be horses today." Spike replied.
"Among other things." Angel adds as he studies the approaching horde. The four companions look up and see an angry looking dragon, flying overhead.
"Okay, you take the 30,00 on the left…." Gunn said jokingly to Illyria, who in return cuts him off with her response.
"You're fading. You'll last 10 minutes at best."
Gunn takes a firmer grip on his battle-axe as he gets to his feet. "Then let's make 'em memorable."
Angel, Spike, Illyria and Gunn slowly walked towards the advancing demon horde. Spike turned to Angel as they moved forward. "In terms of a plan?"
"We fight."
"Bit more specific?"
Holding his sword at the ready, Angel smiles. "Well, personally, I kind of want to sly the dragon." He said as he stepped forward. "Let's go to work." Angel adds as he swings his sword at one of the nearer demons.
The others fallowed suit, attacking the front line of the horde in a display of pure heroism
.
"Illyria, protect Gunn!" Angel called as the battle picked up in intensity.
Angel caught the attacking demon's scythe like sword on his broadsword before kicking it square in the stomach, resulting in it flying backwards, knocking down several of the other demons.
"We can't bloody keep this up much longer!" Spike shouted from next to Angel, as the sword he wielded beheaded a demon.
"I know." Angel replied in frustration, another two demons already closing in on him.
"Thought of anything in the way of a plan?" Spike asked. "Or we just gonna stick with the 'going down in a blaze of glory like true heroes' approach?"
As Angel and Spike berated each other, Illyria was purely focused on venting her emotions on the demon horde. Her fists collide with the head's of countless demons, all the while the image of Wesley dying flashed through her mind. It didn't make sense to her, he was nothing, just a human but why was his death causing such pain.
In the dining room of the now dead demonic wizard known as Vail, the body of Wesley Wyndam-Pryce lay in a pool of his own blood. The smile upon his face reflected the last moments he had spent in the arms of his true love.
A swirling noise filled the room and small crackles of an orange-red coloured energy appeared above the body of the fallen champion. The crackling of the mystic energy became more frequent until a portal of the same orange-red energy opened.
The portal continued to crackle and fizz for several moments until it closed. When it did, the body of Wesley had gone, leaving behind a pool of blood on the floor where it had lain.
Angel glanced up as the Dragon continued to fly overhead, occasionally descending in a fly by action in an attempt to spook Angel and his companions. He knew something had to be done about it but what, he wasn't sure of.
"Angel, Gunn's wounds are grave. He requires immediate aid." He heard Illyria say in her trademark cold, emotionless voice. He spared another glance up at the dragon and saw it was coming in for another sweep, now was the time to act.
Thrusting his sword into the chest of a small, grey coloured demon. He took the axe, which it was wielding from its hands and threw it high into the air.
The axe struck the Dragon's head, piercing its skull and killing it instantly. No one else saw the Dragon falling from the sky, with a loud crash it landed on top of the attacking horde of demons.
The majority of the demons were cut off from Angel and his companions, those that weren't, were killed quickly.
"Right, now what?" Spike asked as he looked at the body of the Dragon, because of its huge size, it had struck the surrounding buildings on the way down causing several chucks of brick to fall onto the horde with it.
Angel walked over to the fence. Using his sword, he cut a large hole into it. "We get out of here."
"So? Why are we here again?" Kennedy asked Willow as they walked up a street in LA.
"We are here because Angel asked for my help. Giles wasn't to clear on the specifics though."
"But Angel is working for the enemy now, you know that right?"
"Hey!" Faith, who had been silently walking behind the pair, responded. "I'm sure he has his reasons.
"She has a point. Angel is still our friend, no matter what." Willow added, tenderly stroking Kennedy's cheek.
Kennedy smiled in response. "Okay, I trust you."
Willow, together with Faith and Kennedy, continued to make their way towards the Wolfram & Hart building.
Angel lead his companions as they quickly moved through the back alleys that lead away from the site of their previous battle. Spike was helping Gunn, whose wounds were beginning to take their toll. Illyria brought up the rear.
"Angel, where we heading?" Spike asked.
"We need to get Gunn to a hospital." Angel replied. "Though we all won't make it, not like this. First we will head underground, try to throw them off our trial then you will get Gunn to the nearest hospital while me and Illyria stop them from going after you."
"Sounds like a plan." Spike replied as he examined Gunn's wounds once again. His hand hung limply, dragging his axe along the floor when he walked and his eyes were only half open, giving the impression that he was slipping in and out of consciousness.
"What do you mean by 'heading underground'?" Illyria asked as she came to stand beside Angel.
"This." Angel replied as he pulled open a nearby sewer entrance, revealing the metallic ladder that lead down into the darkness.
"What the hell happened here?" Faith asked in shock as she looked up at the Wolfram & Hart building. The building was in disrepair, windows broken and huge cracks running up its entire length.
"That's a good question." Willow replied quietly as the trio walked into the building and saw the internal damage. Huge chunks of the ceiling and walls lay scattered across the floor and the majority of the lights were off, casting the building into an eerie glow.
Willow turned to Faith, fear evident on her face. "I don't like this. I think we had better find Angel, now."
"Your right. We need to find Angel." Faith replied as she examined the destruction before her. "If we can."
Conner walked meekly along the street, something didn't feel right to him. He had wanted to help his father, however, Angel had told him to go home. Now he couldn't shake the feeling that he was just being a coward.
His head jerked up when he heard a familiar voice from close by, at least it seemed familiar. Seeking out the source, he saw three women heading in the direction he had just come from.
He followed them back to the abandoned building of Wolfram & Hart, studying them the entire way.
Two of the three seemed familiar, as if he knew them but then he didn't. Perhaps they are somehow connected to his new memories, the ones that are mixed together with his old ones.
He watched from the shadows as the three of them emerged from inside the Wolfram & Hart building. Deciding that perhaps he didn't know them after all.
He turned and began to walk away, however, he stopped when someone called out to him.
"Conner?" Faith asked, causing all his memories of her and Willow to come rushing back.
The tunnel Angel was following lead into a large opening, which had several other tunnels leading off it, going in many different directions. He stopped as he reached the centre and started to look around.
"Can you hear that?" He asked Spike, who had just came into the opening, still helping Gunn.
"Hear what?"
The sounds of feet hitting the stone floors of the pathways ran out through the sewers, coming from every direction. As something moved quickly towards the opening where Angel and his friends were, they moved into a tight circle in the centre and waited for the pursuing horde to arrive.