Standing on the Edge of Tomorrow
Previously:
Kara closed her eyes, remembering the fear she had felt coming off the guy she threatened earlier. It had felt amazing to have that kind of control over someone else. Opening her eyes, she said grimly, "I'll take care of it."
Chapter Fifty-Eight:
"What did it take?" Kara asked, walking into the room. She folded her arms across her chest and leaned against the doorframe. The light from the dying sun slanted in through the front window and illuminated the room in dappled shades of crimson. Robson looked up from the book he was reading. The light fell across his face, highlighting his hair, and making his eyes sparkle.
The girls were in the backyard with Buffy and Faith, training as usual. Joyce was in the kitchen preparing dinner with Dawn and Spike. Giles and Jack were in the dining room with Willow and Tara, updating the Council's computer files. The house was quiet and it seemed to Kara as if the world had stopped moving. "What do you mean?" Robson asked, setting his book down on the coffee table.
"Did you settle for thirty pieces of silver?" Kara asked, stalking into the room. Leaning across the coffee table, she stared him in the eyes. The last rays of the sun pierced her vision and her eyes lit up in red. "Or did it give you more?"
Robson held her gaze, raising his chin slightly in defiance. "You don't understand," he said.
"I'm sure I don't. Explain it to me," Kara ground out between clenched teeth, sitting across from him.
"You're never going to defeat the First. It's folly. The only hope is to join him," Robson explained.
"You lost hope," Kara commented lowly. Robson nodded.
"Yes. I lost it a long time ago. Long before any of this happened. This world is so full of violence and despair. How long do you think it will take for humans to destroy themselves, even if you vanquish every demon on the earth? As we speak, people are killing children for sport, for politics, for religion. They rape women to show their dominance. They execute anyone who poses a threat, anyone who's different. Why? Because the human race is weak. And eventually, it will burn itself out," Robson said grimly. "You can't tell me you haven't looked at this world and lost all hope in it," Robson finished, leaning forward slightly. Kara watched him intently.
She smiled slowly, her eyes dancing. "Of course I've lost hope in the world. Everyone has," she answered. Robson sat back triumphantly. "The only difference between you and me is that the world gave my hope back."
Robson frowned. "What do you mean?"
"I sat on the edge of the world with nothing but misery in my heart and I fell. When I landed, the world caught me again," Kara said. "Can't you see the beauty there is out there?" Kara asked, motioning out of the front window. "There's beauty in everything, Robson. From the weeds growing up through the cracks in the sidewalk, to the flowers growing out of mud in the landfill, to the smile a stranger gives you walking down the street. All these things may seem so small and insignificant, but they give me hope when I can't give it to myself."
"You're a fool," Robson spat. "Flowers and weeds and the kindness of strangers won't save this world."
"Maybe not," Kara agreed. "But they won't destroy it either." Pausing, Kara smiled and reached into the pocket of her jacket. She pulled out an object and sat it on the table. Then she leaned back and watched Robson. "I'm giving you a choice, Robson," she said slowly. "If you've lost all hope...then use that," she said, motioning to the gun on the table. "Because if you don't, I will."
Rising to her feet, she threw him a last glance before walking out of the living room. She walked into the foyer and pulled open the front door, stepped out, and closed the door behind her. She watched as the sun slipped below the line of trees dotting the street and disappeared from view. Shoving her hands in her pocket, she began walking down the street. Her feet carried her as if of their own will, but she knew where they were heading. Dimly, she heard a gun shot ring out into the night. She knew the house would be in chaos and everyone would have questions. Willow and Tara would have an idea of what happened, but Kara thought it best if no one else knew about Robson's betrayal.
She understood his reasons far better than she was willing to admit. Often, the fight against evil seemed like a pointless venture. For centuries, slayers fought and died. For what? Demons continued to live and thrive and slayers continued to rise and fall like the waves in the sea. Neither side advanced any closer to victory and Kara never imagined they would. She couldn't imagine a world without demons. Nor could she imagine a world without slayers. But she lived for that imaginary day when she could step out at night and not be afraid of what might be lurking the shadows behind her. Though perhaps Robson was right. Maybe even after the demons were gone, man would tear itself asunder.
Was it human nature to fight and struggle, to hate and bring suffering down upon the world? It seemed that throughout history, one war would end only for another to begin. Kara sighed deeply, watching as the high school loomed closer in front of her. After the last bombing, construction crews had gone in and fixed the place up. Kara smiled grimly. Perhaps that was what kept the human race alive. Even after all of the chaos and destruction that plagued the earth, man always rebuilt. In the face of overwhelming odds, man struggled on and survived the darkness.
Kara kicked open the front doors. It was a Saturday and the school was dark inside and out. "Anybody home?" She called out. Almost instantly, two bringers appeared a couple of yards down the hall. "I want to see it," Kara said loudly. The bringers looked at each other, despite their lack of eyes, and turned back to Kara. Then they nodded. Taking off down the hall, they beckoned for her to follow.
Kara obliged and they came to a staircase leading to the basement. One of the bringers opened the door and Kara moved forward. She descended the stairs and heard the door slam shut behind her. Her feet touched the concrete floor of the basement and she heard a voice. "You wanted to see me?" The First said, stepping out of the shadows in front of her.
"Yeah," Kara said, watching it approach. It was wearing Callum's face again. "Robson's dead," she announced, watching its eyes briefly widen in surprise.
"You killed him?" The First asked, covering its momentary lack of discretion with a façade of nonchalance.
"No, he killed himself. Though, I may have provided him with the necessary implement and incentive to do so," Kara replied.
"But his blood is still on your hands," the First pointed out.
"Guess I'll see you in Hell then," Kara retorted.
"Would you like to?"
"Like to what?" Kara asked, watching as the First paced back and forth in front of her.
"See Hell," the First replied. "I can show it to you."
Kara hesitated. "Show me," she finally said. The First motioned for her to follow. They passed through a labyrinth of hallways and descended on a path that spiraled down into the very mouth of Hell. Finally, they stopped at a balcony constructed of rock. Stepping up to the railing, Kara looked down on the pit of Hell. She sucked in a breath, both terrified and entranced by the sight.
"Beautiful isn't it?" The First said, coming up behind her.
"Something like that," Kara responded. She gazed down at the pit of demons, writhing and crawling over each other like a unified mass sweating, putrid life.
"I could use a new second in command, you know," the First pointed out. Kara looked over at it.
"No," she said sternly.
"This could all be yours," the First said, leaning in and whispering in her ear. "I could save her."
"Who?" Kara asked, feeling the hot breath of the First on her neck. She had to remind herself that it wasn't actually Callum standing next to her.
"Kennedy," the First breathed, watching Kara tense as it said her name. "She's so lost, so trapped. She'll never find her way out on her own. I can save her."
Kara closed her eyes and tried to block out the sounds of the demons clamoring below. It was impossible. She felt overwhelmed by it, as if the demons were clawing into her skin and fighting for control of her heart. "No," Kara said again.
"I'll kill them all, one by one. All of the people you love. I'll make you watch them all die, just like you did in your world. Then I'll kill you."
Kara's eyes flashed open and she looked over at the First, her eyes turning amber. "I will never stand beside you," she said sternly.
"Really?" The First said. "Then what are you doing right now?" Turning Kara fled, ascending through the tunnels and hallways out of the school, until the chill night air smacked her in the face. She paused, panting, doubled over in front of the high school. She could still hear the demons clamoring in her mind and smell the foul odor of Hell tainting her nostrils. The she ran, chasing away the memories and fleeing from the chill that had settled in her soul.