Chapter 5 - First Move
The plan's as ready as it's going to be. I've told them I'm ready, that I'm sure I can do what we need, but the truth is? Not so sure. It's hard. I've been part of the Slayage team for as long as I remember, but it went wrong. I got on a power kick, and I did things I wish I hadn't. I hurt people, but they forgave me, at least, those who survived forgave me. And I've been back on the mojo, but always with someone looking over my shoulder. Now, Buffy's gone, Jenna's trying to make me deal with things on my own again, and Giles and the others are relying on me.
We had a long planning session last night, working out the details. I think Westgate's going to get a surprise. Giles is inclined to trust him, but it's obvious that he doesn't know who to trust. He thinks that someone above him is in the same camp as Dawson, but he's not sure how far up the problem goes.
Westgate has agreed to transfer Dawson to a military hospital some hundred miles north of here. He just doesn't believe she's going to get there. The ambulance will be leaving the underground complex, and the plan is that we're going to stay close enough to stop the suspected ambush if there's something other than standard military tactics used. Of course, Westgate is expecting that, between us, we'll foil the ambush, and take Dawson and some evidence back to his base. Our plan is slightly different.
It took a bit of organisation earlier today, but Xander came up with the transport again – a van, and I've done my best to hide it. It's not so easy to make something as big as that actually invisible, so I'm going for inconspicuous. The idea is that no one should give it a second look. We're hoping that whoever they send will have no experience with magic beyond the ability to neutralise it. It's a big gamble, but we don't think anyone too senior in the organisation is likely to show up on this type of operation. Whoever they are, they haven't been too big on taking risks so far.
So, here we are, skulking in the bushes by the side of the road, waiting.
Sure enough, right on cue, the ambulance appears. Xander pulls out onto the road behind it and we begin the journey.
Giles is up front with Xander. Jenna and I are behind, and the tension's at a high level. Anya promised to keep an eye on us when she could, but none of us have any idea exactly what that might mean.
Logically, on the intended route, the most likely place for an ambush is close to the start. The area is deserted, so there's almost no likelihood of unwanted witnesses.
And two miles into the journey, we're proved right. We've been following a way behind, and Jenna and I have been keeping track of the ambulance to make sure nothing happens while we're out of visual contact. The first hint we get is a lessening of the picture we're getting. It's like everything gets slightly blurred, and then we start losing the peripheral vision. Even though everything we are seeing looks normal, I know we're getting close, so we signal to Xander to put his foot down, and Jenna and I start to put together the spell we're going to need.
The best theory we've got on the sponges is that that they counter magic by opening millions of minute wormhole things, and these draw the magic in. The shielding we've managed to come up with should seal these wormholes, and hopefully do it fast enough that the magic can't escape. There're a lot of ifs and maybes there, but it's the best we've got. Once we've set it up, Jenna's going to handle that side of things, leaving me to do whatever else needs to be done.
We've got a plan for the sponges themselves. I'm going to teleport them to Angel's mansion. We've erected a cage there, but it shouldn't be needed for long. Jacob and Rebecca are waiting there, and as soon as they've had the chance to check them out, they're going to send them back to their own world, as proof to their people that one of their myths might not be as mythical as they'd thought.
As we round the last bend, I put everything I've got into the sealing spell, and I feel the blurring start to clear. Jenna nods, telling me she can handle it alone for now, and I get into the teleportation.
The first time I tried teleportation it was pretty spectacular. Of course, I was up against a hellgod, and it left me with nosebleeds and things, but hey, it did the job. I've ironed out some of the kinks since then. It'll probably cause me a headache, but I'm hoping I'm past the nosebleeds, and I've managed to control the destination pretty well. Which is kinda the plan here.
As the van stops, I pull my attention to what's going on outside. The ambulance has been stopped, and it looks like its tyres have burst. It's slewed across the road, but upright. It's surrounded by armed men, and their guns are trained on the driver of the ambulance. There's an armed man by his side, but he's realised that they're outnumbered. They both get out when ordered to do so.
I'm gratified to note that neither group seems to have noticed us approaching, judging by their looks of incredulity as they take in the appearance of a third vehicle. But, there's a lot more to do, so I make use of their temporary confusion to move the plan along a stage. First teleportation, get rid of the sponges. When that's done, I glance at Jenna, noticing just how much her job took out of her. I'm still feeling pretty good, I've got to admit. There's the start of a headache, but I can pretty much ignore it. The feeling of success is more than enough to counter a bit of achiness.
The next stage is to find a way to get Dawson out of here without anyone getting hurt. I train my sight on the inside of the ambulance, but Westgate's in there with Dawson, and they're physically too close for me to teleport one without the other. The attackers are getting nervous now, and I sense that some of them are itching to start firing, so they're my next priority.
I fill my mind with the memory of an area not too far away, about ten minutes walk from the nearest road. Then I add the men to that picture, focus my will, and say the words that finish the spell.
The remaining men are now grabbing the weapons they'd previously thrown down, and looking towards our van. They're obviously confused, thinking on one hand that we're possibly on their side, but they're also suspicious about how we've managed to get rid of their attackers, so we're back to having weapons trained on us. Then again, perhaps Westgate warned them about us. I'm not sure, but I'm not about to take any chances.
I pause only long enough to picture the second area I had in mind, this time a couple of miles south of the first. Repeating the procedure, I banish the rest of the men there.
"Ok, let's do this," I suggest to the others.
Giles and I get out of the van, and approach the ambulance. Giles gives the pre-arranged signal - several thumps on the door, and Westgate opens it. As we agreed with him, only he and Dawson are inside, but then, I already knew that.
"I didn't hear any shots being fired," he comments, looking around. Then he spots that things aren't as he expected.
"Where are my men?" he demands. "What have you done with them?"
"I sent them out to do some field work," I answer.
"Giles, that wasn't part of the plan," he replies, ignoring me.
"Well, actually, it was," Giles admits. "Not your plan, perhaps, but …"
His eyes narrow as he takes in the situation.
"I could start firing," he warns, hefting his weapon.
"You could, although I could probably stop you," I admit. "Or I could send you to join your men. Or even to join the others. That might be interesting, don't you think?"
I know, it's childish, but I can't resist. I really don't like being ignored like that.
"Listen to her," Giles advises. "She can do that. No one's been hurt so far, and we'd like to keep it that way. We're just going to take Dawson, and then we'll be on our way."
He thinks about that for a moment, but it's obvious he can see he hasn't really got a choice.
"That's quite a team you've got there," he says, words still directed at Giles. "Even without the Slayer, it's a force to be reckoned with. Makes me wonder why you've been having all those problems in the first place."
Giles shrugs. "We've still got a lot of work to do before the end of this. If you're interested, we'll share any information we come up with. I wish we could have done things differently, but we really don't have too many reasons to trust you yet."
Xander and Jenna have joined us, and Giles addresses Xander. "Help me transfer Dawson to our van."
I stay close to Westgate while the two men climb into the ambulance. They emerge a moment later, with the woman, who's unconscious.
"She's drugged," Westgate offers. "Should wear off in a couple of hours, though. Be careful then, she's quite a handful."
Westgate's looking nervous, and I know he's trying to work out how to explain what happened. I suspect it'd be easier for him to look innocent if he's at least found with his own men, so I imagine where I sent them. I add Westgate to that mental picture, and he's gone too. I follow his thoughts as he finds himself transported away, and I intrude on them long enough to add, "The men who attacked you are here." To that thought, I add a mental map of the surrounding area with a 'You Are Here' arrow, and a flashing red dot for the others. I don't know if it'll do any good, but it gives him the option to at least try to capture the other men. Of course, if they're only following orders, they might not know anything useful.
We load Dawson into our van, and drive off quickly, while I scan the surroundings for anyone intent on stopping us from getting away.