AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Thanks to all of you who've helped out a lot. artemis66 & Imzadi: thanks for re-reviewing after the mix up : ) jen30: mucho gracias for the beta-reading suggestions !

The pairings will remain anonymous, since I myself don't know what I'm going to do. I'm happy for suggestions though--if I like the pairing I'll keep it in the story. I answered the "different colored flyer" dilemma in the next chapter…please review !

Getting to Know You
0 Dead; Night 1

Faith's eyes quickly adjusted to the night, but without her slayer senses which had somehow disappeared it took a little longer than expected. What she saw was somehow coincidence--how could he be here, sitting to her side when he should have been somewhere halfway across the world (if she remembered correctly)?

"As much as I hate to admit it," the dark figure said, still struggling to sit up, "I am no god."

Faith offered a smile, which he probably couldn't see in the dark--unless he still had his *superpower*. An idea sparked in her head at the thought.

"Hey Oz," she said, slowly turning towards him with an aching body. Probably drugged, Faith thought. "Do you still have that werewolf thing going on?"

Instinctively, he looked up to the sky. With the heavy, thick leaves surrounding his space, Oz couldn't tell if the moon was full or not. In fact, he couldn't feel the moon like he used to be able to. "I guess not. I don't feel anything."

"Yeah, same with the Slayer gig," Faith admitted. "I wonder what we're doing here? And wait…isn't that Gunn? And Cordy?"

Oz shifted into confused mode. He had almost no idea what was going on, just that while in Sri Lanka searching for answers to his werewolf problem he received an orange flyer about some "Battle Royale" thing. I've mistaken this place for another "Battle of the Bands" opportunity, he thought to himself. What was he doing in the US? Or what was Faith doing in Sri Lanka? And who had a gun?--Cordy?

"Huh?" was the only word Oz said, keeping his sentences minimized yet never failing to reflect off his deep thoughts.



Dawn woke up with a headache. She felt like she was dreaming--her head spun around her, dizzying up her vision. She slowly opened her eyes (which were drowsy for a strange reason) and spotted a figure hunched over on a rock near by.

Cautiously, Dawn looked around. What looked like a very malnourished and pale woman lay unconscious besides her. She had never seen her before, but her body radiated some familiarity.

Swaying, she glanced back at the hunched figure. Dawn searched her memory for his--obviously a male--back, but she was hopeless. If only she could see his face…she didn't want to get up and find out the man she was with was also a stranger.

Wait, she thought to herself, a little slow. This doesn't look like a prep college course class…

Her thoughts caused her to stir, leading the stranger to turn around. Dawn's eyes met his and in an instant, she realized who it was.

"Riley!" she cried out, struggling to get up. She made it halfway before almost falling. Luckily, he was there to break her fall.

"Dawn, watch yourself," he said, leaning her back onto a tree stump. "We were drugged, and I have no idea how we got here."

"Did you hear that, Miss Edith?" a voice behind them called. Both Riley and Dawn turned their heads to see the pale woman making her way towards them, stroking a small doll in her hands. "That makes thousands of us…including the stars and you and I and…them."

The woman known as Drusilla made a hissing noise at them before retreating slowly to the ground. "I don't like you very much," she confessed. "You have compassion written all over you."

Dawn's eyes bulged as Riley's stiffened. In unity, they both muttered "vampire" under their breaths.




As Faith and Oz woke up along with Dawn, Riley and Drusilla in another part of who knew where, a loud screeching noise filled the air. No one, including the others who were yet to awaken from the drug, knew where it came from--only that it omitted a sound of a bad radio station and nails upon a chalkboard combined together.

Elsewhere in the forest-like nature, bodies arose. All separated in threes or fours, each person heard the screeching. Then, as soon as it started, it stopped. A strange voice came on with a slight Korean/Japanese accept.

"Gooood morning, children!" he said, obviously oblivious to the discomfort each and every single one of them felt as they were scattered away from each other. "Welcome to Battle Royale, everyone! Did you sleep very well?"

Groans filled the air, along with merciless shouts. As if all the Buffy and Angel crew realized they were separated, different shouts began to fill the atmosphere.

"Buffy? Xander? Giles? Is Giles here?"

"Where the hell are we?"

"I'm hungry--give me food!"

"How did we get here?"

"Where are you guys? Keep talking!"

"Shut up and let the damn thing speak!"

Everyone seemed to hear the last comment, but no one knew who said it. The shouts quieted down, partly because of the large trees blocking out the echoes.

"Good thinking. Now, before I begin, let me warn you of the metallic collars around your neck."

Tara was one of the many who woke up to the screeching. Somewhere by a river, she knew she had been drugged. Attempting to use her magic, Tara realized that it wouldn't work.

As soon as the mysterious voice mentioned the collars, Tara instinctively put her hand to her neck. She felt a coldness about the collar, then realized it practically chocked her. It was strange how she didn't notice it before. The strangers around her did the same--one male who was green and another girl who looked lost like her.

Laughing, the announcements continued. "Silly children! I wouldn't tamper with those if I were you. Try to get the collars off of you and your head go BOOM!"

Suddenly, all hands quickly drifted away from the silver collar. The green male one spoke first. "Well," he gulped, "that ain't a go."

"And for all you special people," the announcer continued. "You know who you are. If you've noticed, none of your special powers work. No magic can break this force, and all strengths are of human strengths--that includes you vampires, but you can still slip into vampire mode. Sun cannot pierce you here, but I'm sure a decapitated head vampire is quite the same as a dusted one.

"You are probably all wondering what you are here for. This is no joke, but it is a game. You will all stay here for five days. In five days, if there is not one undead winner, you will all explode. Or die. Which ever you prefer.

"There is no escape. Everyone should have bags located ten steps to their right, equipped with weapons, food, maps, and other necessary items. As soon as you get your bag, I advice you run. Who can you trust in a game such as this?"

Suspicions dwelled in the groups. Each *player* looked towards her or his opponent, unsure of who to trust. There was hardly anyone in their group who they knew. Were their friends in on the game as well? No one could tell--they were all grouped with either strangers or people they hardly took the chance to know.

"Yes, yes, trust is the key. Or rather, the key you shouldn't just hand around. Try to escape and you will be sent in circles. Stick to the map, or be a wanderer forever--remember, this is very strong magic. Oh, and if at least one person doesn't die every twenty four hours, random heads will explode! Listen to the announcements every third hour for more information--and have a fun time, kiddos!"




And with that the speaker died out, leaving all of the scattered groups confused and lost. Deep within the middle of the woods (one of the most unfortunate places to be in a game such as this) stood Buffy, Connor, and Lindsey, eyeing each other suspiciously. Buffy was aware of her current position, and so was Connor--their strength was, dare they say, average, but neither of them knew about the other.

Buffy slid over her right, facing both Connor and Lindsey. She didn't know any of them, and if it was one thing she knew "trust" was not an option with these two.

"Wrong right, hon," the older one said, looking bored.

Huffing, Buffy answered, "I knew that." She took a step to her left and the man's right after looking towards the section of the bags. "I'll go first. And I'm keeping an eye on my back, just so you two know."

She moved backwards steadily, thanks to advanced training. Even if her strength was average, Buffy still had her quickness. "I'm off to find my friends. The ones I trust."

"Good luck," the younger one said sarcastically. He snickered and said, "I doubt you will."

Buffy's confidence was back. She decided to go for a bluff, hoping the two males were stupider than they looked. "I'm the Slayer. I've got slayer-senses in me--"

"I thought Faith was the Slayer," Connor interrupted, taking a step forward. Protectively Buffy took a step back, eyeing him suspiciously. He didn't seem to notice as he pressed on. "Did she…die?"

Buffy stifled a laugh. "There's two of us. And how do you know Faith?"

"This is all sweet, but I highly doubt this is the time for reunions." Lindsey walked away from both of them and grabbed a pack. He opened the greenish back and grinned. "Now look what I got." Lindsey put his hand inside the bag and to their astonishment, both Buffy and Connor took a cautious step backwards.